Iran Watch Listen

In this episode of Iran Watch Listen, Wisconsin Project Executive Director Valerie Lincy and Senior Research Associate John Caves sat down with John Lauder, a Wisconsin Project Senior Fellow with more than three decades of experience in the U.S. intelligence community, to think through the new realities after the bombing of Iran's nuclear program and the return of U.N. sanctions. What might come n...

In this episode of Iran Watch Listen, we sat down with Behnam Ben Taleblu and Michael Eisenstadt, experts on the strategic challenges posed by Iran. We discussed the opportunities and pitfalls facing the second Trump administration as it makes a last-ditch effort to prevent Iran's increasingly advanced nuclear program from crossing the threshold to a bomb. The conversation took place on April 22 a...

In this episode of Iran Watch Listen, we sat down with Hanna Notte and Jim Lamson, experts at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies. We discussed the history of Iran and Russia's military relationship, how it has changed since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and areas where both countries might benefit from deeper cooperation in the future. The conversation took pla...

In this episode of Iran Watch Listen, we sat down with Wolf-Christian Paes, an expert on arms and maritime security who served on the U.N. Panel of Experts on Yemen from 2018 until 2023. We discussed Iran's support for the Houthi rebel group, the ways in which arms are smuggled into Yemen, and the challenges of enforcing the arms embargo imposed on the Houthis by the U.N. Security Council—as well...

In this episode of Iran Watch Listen, we sat down with Dr. Bruce Goodwin, an expert on nuclear weapons design and testing. We discussed the steps required to build a nuclear weapon and what is publicly known about Iran's weaponization efforts to date. The conversation took place on May 3 and was hosted by Valerie Lincy, Executive Director at the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control, and John...

In this episode of Iran Watch Listen, we sat down with Dan Gettinger and Adam Rawnsley, both experts on Iranian drones and drone technology. We discussed the current state of Iran's capabilities, Iran's growing ambitions to become a drone exporter, and whether tighter sanctions and export controls could hinder its progress. The conversation took place on September 15 and was hosted by John Caves,...

In the fourth episode of Iran Watch Listen, we sit down with Neil Watts, who served for five years as the Maritime Expert on the United Nations Panel of Experts on North Korea. We discuss missile and arms-related cooperation between Iran and North Korea and how such collaboration has evolved over time, from the transfer of complete systems to the sharing of test data and technical expertise. Neil...

In the third episode of the Iran Watch Listen podcast, we speak with Laura Rockwood, a former senior official at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), about the authorities that the IAEA uses to conduct nuclear inspections in Iran, as well as Iran's recent decision to reduce the Agency's level of access. Background The IAEA plays a leading role in monitoring Iran's nuclear program, includ...

In the second episode of Iran Watch Listen , we speak with John Smith, the former Director of the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), about the impact of the Trump administration's Iran sanctions campaign and how Iran policy might change with the incoming Biden administration. Background OFAC administers and enforces U.S. economic and trade sanctions programs. Forei...

In the inaugural episode of  Iran Watch Listen  we discuss deceptive shipping practices used by Iran to evade U.S. sanctions and U.S. efforts to counter these practices with two experts from the U.S. State Department: Blake Pritchett, the Deputy Director of the Office of Economic Sanctions Policy, and Jen Chalmers, Chief of the Disruption Operations and Transport Team. Read more about our guests b...

Welcome to Iran Watch Listen , a new podcast for the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control's Iran Watch website hosted by Valerie Lincy, the Wisconsin Project's director. Iran Watch Listen will bring you in-depth interviews with experts in and out of government. We'll be talking to them about Iranian proliferation and illicit procurement plus related export control and sanctions efforts. You'l...