The election of President Donald Trump has raised tensions between the US and Iran just as an intense power struggle plays out ahead of Iran’s presidential election in May. The upcoming election was expected to decide to what extent Tehran opens up domestically — and to the outside world — after the 2015 nuclear deal ended the country’s isolation.

As the Iranian vote nears, the US senate is poised to pass a bill that will further enable Trump to violate the deal. Iran’s plans to restart its nuclear program if the deal falls apart have been labelled by some as ‘disastrous’ for the Middle East. How will Donald Trump’s plans to kill the nuclear deal affect the upcoming election, and Iran’s already strained relations with the West and its Gulf neighbours?

Ahead of the election we will reflect on Iran under President Rouhani, the future of his involvement in Syria, and where the country’s international relations are headed.

Chaired by Azadeh Moaveni (@AzadehMoaveni), senior lecturer in journalism at Kingston University, former Middle East correspondent for Time magazine and the Los Angeles Times and author of Lipstick Jihad and Honeymoon in Tehran. Her research has long focused on how political instability impacts women, and she is writing a book about women and ISIS.

Kasra Naji (@BBCKasraNaji) is special correspondent for BBC Persian TV and author of Ahmedinejad: The Secret History of Iran’s Radical Leader.

Saeed Kamali Dehghan (@SaeedKD) is a staff journalist with the Guardian. He has previously written from the Iranian capital, Tehran. He is now based in London and was named 2010 Journalist of the Year at the Foreign Press Association awards.

James Rubin is a writer, commentator and lecturer on world affairs and US foreign policy. He contributes a weekly column to The Sunday Times. He served under President Clinton as assistant secretary of state for public affairs and chief spokesman for secretary of state Madeleine K. Albright from 1997 to May 2000.

The changing nature of conflict in the 21st century now requires a new toolbox. Are we using old methods for new problems in an age of irregular war? How can discourse surrounding international relations and conflict resolution respond to global terrorist movements and the permuting role of technology in warfare?

By exploring the timely question of intervention versus non-intervention, and examining the changing nature of warfare and technology, this discussion presents a comprehensive overview of new thinking on international diplomacy and the complexities of peace-making in the age of ‘irregular war’.

Chaired by Jenny Kleeman, British documentary film-maker and journalist who is best known for her work on Channel 4’s foreign affairs series Unreported World.

Speakers:

Paul Rogers is professor in the department of peace studies at Bradford University, northern England. He is openDemocracy’s international security editor, and has been writing a weekly column on global security since 28 September 2001; he also writes a monthly briefing for the Oxford Research Group. His latest book is Irregular War: ISIS and the New Threat from the Margins

Gabrielle Rifkind is the Director of the Oxford Process at Oxford Research Group, which leads on preventive diplomacy work and high-level mediation. She is a group analyst and specialist in conflict resolution. She combines in-depth political and psychological expertise with many years’ experience in promoting serious analysis and dialogue. As a political entrepreneur, Gabrielle has a deep understanding of human behaviour and motivation. She is co-author with Gianni Picco (former UN Under-Secretary-General and high-level Middle East negotiator) of “Fog of Peace: How to Prevent War”, an in-depth analysis of why conflict prevention requires a new approach.

Julian E. Barnes covers terrorism, NATO and security issues from the Wall Street Journal’s Brussels Bureau, which he joined in 2015. Previously he spent five years covering the Pentagon and national security issues from The Wall Street Journal’s Washington bureau. Before joining the Journal in 2010, Mr. Barnes spent nearly a decade reporting on U.S. foreign policy and the military, including frequent reporting trips to Iraq and Afghanistan, for the Los Angeles Times and U.S. News and World Report. A graduate of Harvard University, He has also worked for the New York Times and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

Julia Ebner is a Policy Analyst at Quilliam. Her research focuses on EU terrorism prevention initiatives and counter-extremism policies in the UK, France and Germany. She co-authored “The EU and Terrorism: Is Britain Safer In or Out?” and contributed extensively to the EU-funded TERRA policy advice report as well as research projects for FATE (Families Against Terrorism and Extremism) and the Kofi Annan Foundation. Julia has given evidence to parliamentary working groups, spoken at international conferences and in Parliament, held workshops in schools and universities, written for The Guardian, The Independent and Left Foot Forward and given live TV and radio interviews on BBC World News, CNN International, France24, BBC Radio, LBC and others.

Since the Paris attacks on 13 November, world leaders have seemingly put grievances aside to unite in a newly energised fight against Daesh – but what can be achieved by bombing the already bombed-out cities of Syria?

If Daesh is pushed back militarily then what comes next? Who fills the void and how do you stop from merely driving them elsewhere? Even if military gains are made, the ideology remains. Those involved in the attacks in Paris were French and Belgium citizens – how do we tackle radicalisation both online and on the streets of Europe, and prevent rising fear and the polarisation of communities?

The recent downing of a Russian jet by Turkish forces highlights the perils of combat aircraft from different countries operating in the same theatre. How can this be managed logistically without causing another major diplomatic incident?

For the first First Wednesday of 2016 we will be bringing together a panel to answer these questions and to discuss the diplomatic, logistical and ideological challenges of the fight against Daesh.

Chaired by

David Loyn, foreign correspondent for the BBC for over 30 years, most recently Afghanistan correspondent.

The panel

Richard Spencer is Middle East editor of The Daily and Sunday Telegraph. He moved to the Middle East from China in 2009, based in Dubai and then Cairo. Since then, he has reported regularly from Egypt, Libya, Syria and Iraq, and was in Aleppo when Jabhat al-Nusra split to give birth to Daesh.

Shiraz Maher is a senior research fellow at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation, King’s College London and is currently coordinating the centre’s research on the Syrian and Iraqi conflicts.

Robin Yassin-Kassab is a journalist, author of the novel The Road From Damascus and co-author with Leila al-Shami of Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and War.

Azadeh Moaveni is a journalist, writer and lecturer in journalism at Kingston University. She was TIME magazine Middle East correspondent and is author of Lipstick Jihad and Honeymoon in Tehran.

After years of negotiations, world powers have reached a historic deal with Iran, limiting their nuclear activity in return for the lifting of international economic sanctions.

The deal has been met with a mixed response – some celebrate it as a diplomatic triumph, while others describe it as a precursor to a nuclear arms race in the Middle East.

For the first First Wednesday after the summer break we will be debating what the Iran deal means for the country, the region and relations with the West.

Chaired by Azadeh Moaveni, a former Middle East correspondent for Time magazine, she has reported on Iran and the region for much of the past decade. She is the author of Lipstick Jihad, Honeymoon in Tehran, and co-author, with Shirin Ebadi, of Iran Awakening.

The panel:

Kasra Naji is special correspondent for BBC Persian TV and author of Ahmedinejad: The Secret History of Iran’s Radical Leader.

Saeed Kamali Dehghan is a staff journalist with the Guardian. He has previously written from the Iranian capital, Tehran. He is now based in London and was named 2010 Journalist of the Year at the Foreign Press Association awards.

James Rubin is a writer, commentator and lecturer on world affairs and US foreign policy. He contributes a weekly column to The Sunday Times. He served under President Clinton as assistant secretary of state for public affairs and chief spokesman for secretary of state Madeleine K. Albright from 1997 to May 2000.

Con Coughlin is The Telegraph‘s defence editor and chief foreign commentator. He is the author of several books including Churchill’s First War: Young Winston and the fight against the Taliban, Saddam: His Rise and Fall, and Khomeini’s Ghost: The Iranian Revolution and the Rise of Militant Islam.

On Monday 16 June, the Frontline club hosted director Karen Stokkendal Poulsen and veteran European diplomat Robert Cooper for the screening of Poulsen’s new film, The Agreement.

Sir Robert Cooper and director Karen Stokkendal Poulsen in conversation at the Frontline Club.

Before Serbia could begin negotiations to join the European Union, it had to prove it could achieve a modus vivendi with the disputed territory of Kosovo. This gripping film follows negotiations between Serbia and Kosovo, lead by Cooper, as they sought to reach a settlement on peaceful co-existence.

Ahead of tonight's screening of The Agreement Karen Poulsen & diplomat Robert Cooper were interviewed by the BBC http://t.co/g0TJ1EZAP2

— Frontline Club (@frontlineclub) June 16, 2014

When asked about the uniqueness of the film and how the idea for the project came about, Poulsen explained how the piece began its journey to reality:

“I was part of organising a conference . . . about democracy and fragile states and I was utterly bored. I didn’t like the conference at all, I thought it was just people talking about the word ‘democracy’ in 10,000 different ways . . . but I was kind of interested in the new European External Action Service. So I was waiting for Robert Cooper to come on stage and I could not have been more sceptical when he was about to speak.

“Then I thought, ‘Well here is actually something real. I am curious. When he’s talking I actually want to know what is behind this.’ And then I thought maybe . . . the film could be a way of meeting him and get behind what he is doing and also I thought it would be interesting to make a film about European Union policies from another perspective which you rarely see, from the inside.”

The question was then put to Cooper about the unusual nature of the request to film such negotiations so intimately and whether he needed much convincing. Cooper replied:

“The idea that someone might make a film about diplomacy seemed a reasonably good idea because there are lots of films about wars but not very much seen about diplomacy, which is an attempt not to have wars and so I thought it was worth a try. My general attitude was ‘Why not?’

“I had to get Borko [Stefanovic] and Edita [Tahiri] to agree but they were quite happy. Then I had a bit more trouble with the administration who didn’t think this was a very regular thing to do but eventually they also said, ‘Well, nobody minds.’ And I said, ‘Don’t worry, we have complete editorial control,’ which actually wasn’t true!”

Cooper was then challenged on the intricacies and difficulties of brokering such a sensitive agreement. When asked about the  difficulty of remaining truly impartial, he said:

“As far as I was concerned, in a way it was very easy to remain impartial because my job was to get an agreement and if I didn’t get an agreement, I failed. If one or the other side thought that I was on the side of the other then that was going to be fatal.

“To begin with the Kosovars assumed that we were somehow not on their side because not all the EU member states had recognised Kosovo, and I was happy that at the first round of meetings we had, Edita realised that actually we were neutral.”

The whole film takes place against the backdrop of a short and intense time period with an absolute deadline, ahead of the start of Serbia’s accession negotiations. When asked about whether Cooper felt this deadline had forced negotiations onward, he replied:

“It wasn’t just about a deadline. . . . The Serbs had an objective as well as a deadline. They wanted to join the European Union – this is President Tadic’s policy – and bit by bit they came to understand that this wasn’t going to happen unless they seriously moved on Kosovo.

“In a way I feel that the film . . . well, it’s a bit hard on Borko, because Borko was in a tough position. Actually it’s the Serbs who are making the concessions, that’s why he was always in difficulty, that’s why he kept us waiting for six hours . . . but he was in a difficult position. The structure of the negotiations meant that the Serbs were destined to agree things which they did not want to agree. Now, did they implement them or not? Well, that’s another story.”

Poulsen also commented on the situation particularly in the north of Kosovo and how this agreement was only a small part in what is a wider and ongoing process to improve relations between the two countries:

“The north is mainly run by fear, and there was a lot of resistance against the dialogue in general. There was a resistance against Belgrade . . . and against Brussels, but at the same time it’s very controlled and I was very surprised. . . . Although it might seem out of law it has this controlling system and the important thing for the implementation to be successful is to have somebody there that they can trust, but leaving in this agreement, telling them, persuading them, that this is the way forward.”

Poulsen and Cooper both hope to screen The Agreement elsewhere in London soon. News about film screenings and other information relating to the film can be found on their Facebook page here.

David Cameron has subsequently agreed to EU sanctions and travel bans have been imposed on Russian officials. But would our response have been stronger were it not for the importance of Russian money to London?

Russians are granted more investor visas than any other nationality; Russians buy London property, send their children to British schools and hire British lawyers and bankers. For some, Britain has become a shamelessly mercenary country, putting financial gain before morality.

Others argue that the government is right to put growth first; its obligations are to the British people, who are interested in their livelihoods, not the legality of a referendum in Crimea. Are sanctions even the best approach? With them comes the risk of isolating Putin, making a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine crisis less likely.

Standpoint magazine brings together a distinguished panel to debate Britain’s response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea.

Chaired by Daniel Johnson, the founding editor of Standpoint. He covered the end of the Cold War for The Daily Telegraph and is the author of White King and Red Queen: How the Cold War was Fought on a Chess Board.

The panel:

Ben Judah has reported for Standpoint from Russia and Ukraine. He is the author of Fragile Empire: How Russian Fell In And Out Of Love With Vladimir Putin.

Tony Brenton worked for 30 years for the Foreign Office and was British Ambassador in Russia from 2004 to 2008. In 2007 he was awarded a KCMG. He is now extraordinary fellow of Wolfson College, Cambridge.

Roger Boyes is diplomatic editor at The Times. Previously he has worked as a foreign correspondent in Eastern Europe, Berlin and Rome.

Peter Hitchens is a journalist, broadcaster and author. He is a columnist on the Mail on Sunday and has worked as a foreign correspondent in Moscow and Washington.

Your ticket will include a copy of Standpoint magazine.

As fierce fighting continues in Syria, the death toll according to the United Nations has now reached at least 93,000 and the number of refugees fleeing the country has exceeded 1.5 million.

On the ground, assaults are being conducted on all sides and we have seen increased intervention from other parties, such as Hezbollah. On the international stage efforts are being made to bring all parties to the table and the debate about arming rebels is still raging.

We will be joined by five journalists who have covered the situation in Syria extensively since the uprising began in early 2011. They will be discussing recent developments, on the ground and on the international stage, and asking what changes we could see in coming months.

Chaired by Lyse Doucet, BBC Chief International Correspondent.

The panel:

Dr Halla Diyab is an award-winning screen-writer, producer, broadcaster and the founder and the director of Liberty Media Productions.

Anthony Loyd is an award-winning war correspondent and writer. He is currently roving foreign correspondent for The Times. He has travelled to Syria eight times in the past 15 months to cover the conflict. A former army officer, he served in Northern Ireland and the First Gulf War. He left the army in 1991. He is the author of My War Gone By I Miss It So.

James Harkin has been covering the conflict in Syria from all sides for the last two years, from Damascus, Homs and Aleppo and for The New Republic, The Atlantic Monthly, Newsweek, The Nation, the Guardian and a range of papers throughout Europe. He is director of the think-tank analysing new media and social change, Flockwatching.

Patrick Cockburn has been a Middle East correspondent since 1979, first for the Financial Times, then for The Independent. He has covered the conflict in Syria extensively since protests began in 2011. He is author of several books including The Occupation: War and Resistance in Iraq and Muqtada Al-Sadr and the Battle for the Future of Iraq.

EXTERNAL EVENT HELD AT THE ROYAL INSTITUTION OF GREAT BRITAIN.

To mark ten years since the terrorists attacks on the United States, the Frontline Club is holding a special event to look at the extent to which 9/11 has defined our world today and will continue to shape our future.

We will be looking at the “War on Terror” that followed and the impact of the rhetoric, and the reality of a global battle cast in terms of “good vs. evil”: Is it a war that can be won? What has been the impact on a world that is increasingly interconnected?

We will take stock of the seismic events the world has witnessed – from wars waged in Iraq and Afghanistan to terrorists attacks from London to Mumbai and uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa.

Our panel will also try to make sense of other changes that have taken place – from increased surveillance to extraordinary rendition – and examine how the narrative employed by governments, leaders and the media shaped public attitudes.

Join us for a special event with a panel of experts to examine the world today and how the events of 10 years ago have shaped it and will continue to do so.

Chaired by Paddy O’Connell of BBC Radio 4’s Broadcasting House who was living and working in New York on 9/11 and anchored the New York end of the special programme that night for BBC One.

Twitter: @paddy_o_c

With:

Isabel Hilton, international journalist and broadcaster and editor of chinadialogue.net. She began her career in journalism with Scottish Television, then worked for the Daily Express and the Sunday Times before joining the launch team for The Independent in 1986. In 1992 she became a presenter of the BBC’s flagship news programme, The World Tonight and a columnist for The Guardian. In 1999 she joined the New Yorker as a staff writer. Her work has appeared in the Financial Times, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Granta, the New Statesman, El Pais, Index on Censorship and many other publications. She has reported from China, Latin America, Africa, South Asia, the Middle East and Europe and has written and presented several documentaries for BBC television. Since 2001 she has been a presenter of the BBC Radio Three’s cultural programme, Night Waves. She has authored and co-authored several books and holds honorary doctorates from Bradford and Stirling Universities. She was appointed OBE in 2010 for her contribution to raising environmental awareness in China.

Twitter: @isabelhilton

Mehdi Hasan, senior editor (politics) at the New Statesman and a former news and current affairs editor at Channel 4. He is co-author of Ed: the Milibands and the Making of a Labour Leader and author of the new ebook The Debt Delusion. His blog is here.

Twitter: @ns_mehdihasan

Carne Ross, a former British diplomat, author and journalist. Having resigned from the British foreign service after giving secret testimony to an official inquiry into the Iraq war, he then set up the world’s first independent diplomatic advisory group, Independent Diplomat, which advises marginalised countries and groups around the world.  He is author of The Leaderless Revolution: How Ordinary People Will Take Power And Change Politics in the 21st Century.

Twitter: @carneross

Maajid Nawaz, co-Founder and executive director of Quilliam and Founder of Khudi, he was formerly on the UK national leadership for the global Islamist party Hizb ut-Tahrir (HT). He was involved in HT for almost 14 years and was a founding member of HT in Denmark and Pakistan and eventually served four years in an Egyptian prison as an Amnesty International ‘prisoner of conscience’. In prison, he gradually began changing his views until finally renouncing the Islamist ideology while remaining Muslim. He now engages in counter-Islamist thought-generating, social-activism, writing, debating and media appearances.

Twitter: @MaajidNawaz

Michael Goldfarb, author, journalist, broadcaster and GlobalPost’s London correspondent. For NPR and the BBC, Goldfarb has covered conflicts and conflict resolution in Northern Ireland, Bosnia, the Middle East and Latin America. He covered the war in Iraq as an unembedded reporter based in Kurdistan. His book on the conflict, Ahmad’s War, Ahmad’s Peace: Surviving Under Saddam, Dying in the New Iraq was named one of The New York Times’ Notable Books of 2005. Since September 11 2001 he has reported extensively on radical Islam from Cairo to Tehran to the streets of London. On September 11 2001 he was live on the air from 10 until noon in the US presenting part of NPR’s coverage of the event.

Twitter: @MGEmancipation

IN ASSOCIATION WITH BBC ARABIC.

In fact, the Bush-era State Department had sent the name of a diplomat with long experience in the region — Matthew Bryza, a skilled player of pipeline politics whom I’ve known for some 13 years — to the White House as its choice for the Azeri post. But the White House didn’t send Bryza’s nomination to the Senate, and neither has the Obama Administration.

Until now. I’ve received confirmation that — after the clearing of a couple of remaining administrative hurdles — the White House will officially nominate Bryza as U.S. ambassador. He will then be scheduled for a nomination hearing in the Senate.