ISAS Insights

The difficult US-Iran relations have further complicated the search for an 'end game' in Afghanistan. The ongoing talks of the yet-to-be-inked US-Afghan Strategic Partnership deal has raised concerns in Iran of a prolonged US military presence beyond 2014. While the US and Iran share a common goal of preventing the return of the Taliban in Afghanistan, the dynamics of the great power relations could impede the process of effective transition and create long-term instability in the war-torn country.