Lessons of Iran-Contra: Behind the Scenes of Ronald Reagan's Iran Gambit, 1985-86
Based on intensive research into once-classified records, as well as interviews and other accounts from Americans, Iranians and Israelis, Malcolm Byrne will revisit the Reagan administration’s controversial initiative toward Iran in 1985-1986. What was its real purpose? Who were the Iranians involved and what did they want? What was Israel’s role? What are the long-term lessons and impact of the operation?
Overview
Washington History Seminar
Historical Perspectives on International and National Affairs
Lessons of Iran-Contra: Behind the Scenes of Ronald Reagan’s Iran Gambit, 1985-86
Malcolm Byrne
NATIONAL SECURITY ARCHIVE
Based on intensive research into once-classified records, as well as interviews and other accounts from Americans, Iranians and Israelis, Malcolm Byrne’s new book Iran-Contra: Reagan’s Scandal and the Unchecked Abuse of Presidential Power (University Press of Kansas) reexamines the policies and attitudes that constituted the Iran-Contra affair. In this talk, the author will revisit the Reagan administration’s controversial initiative toward Iran in 1985-1986. What was its real purpose? Who were the Iranians involved and what did they want? What was Israel’s role? What are the long-term lessons and impact of the operation?
Malcolm Byrne is author of the newly-released Iran-Contra: Reagan’s Scandal and the Unchecked Abuse of Presidential Power (University Press of Kansas, 2014). He is Deputy Director and Research Director at the nongovernmental National Security Archive based at The George Washington University. He also heads the US-Iran Relations Project which explores the two countries’ perspectives through documentation and interviews from both sides.
Monday September 22, 2014
4:00 p.m.
Woodrow Wilson Center, 6th Floor Moynihan Board Room
Ronald Reagan Building, Federal Triangle Metro Stop
Speaker
Malcolm Byrne
Deputy Director, Director of Research at the National Security Archive
Hosted By
History and Public Policy Program
The History and Public Policy Program makes public the primary source record of 20th and 21st century international history from repositories around the world, facilitates scholarship based on those records, and uses these materials to provide context for classroom, public, and policy debates on global affairs. Read more
Middle East Program
The Wilson Center’s Middle East Program serves as a crucial resource for the policymaking community and beyond, providing analyses and research that helps inform US foreign policymaking, stimulates public debate, and expands knowledge about issues in the wider Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Read more
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