The story of the Iranian nuclear agreement, as told in the West, is a classic narrative of good versus evil, where a recalcitrant Iran is driven to the negotiating table by crippling economic sanctions imposed by a international coalition led by the United States, and then compelled to surrender its nefarious designs for a nuclear weapon in the face of steely American negotiators. The reality is far different.
Deal of the Century tells this story from the perspective of the Iranians, and in doing so takes the reader on a journey into a world seldom seen, and little understood, in the West. Iranian motives behind the nuclear negotiations are explored in depth, and the truth behind Iran's nuclear ambition is revealed, and explained. In the end, Iran concluded a nuclear agreement that saw it give up nothing (its core demand that Iran be permitted to possess an indigenous uranium enrichment capability remained unchanged from 2002 until 2015) while overcoming American-led opposition founded more on fiction than fact.
Key Iranian personalities, such as Supreme Leader Khamenei, President Rouhani, Foreign Minister Zarif, and Parliamentary Speaker Ali Laijani, are brought to life in the text in a manner that belies the simplistic cartoon-like characterizations that more often than not appear in the West. Likewise, the author helps put into context the complex, Byzantine-like structures of Iranian theocratic governance in a manner that brings clarity to a system little understood in the West.
The reader is exposed to the curious blend of religious zealotry and strict adherence to constitutional law that defines Iran's ruling system, especially as it is intertwined with the harsh realities of domestic Iranian politics and regional hostility from Israel and Iran's Gulf Arab neighbours, all of which influenced the pace and substance of Iran's nuclear negotiating position far more than any outside pressure brought to bear by the West. The author makes extensive use of Iranian sources and interviews to tell a story rich in detail, possessing both current and historical context, and which brings to life the other side of the story of the nuclear agreement, largely unknown in the West.
Deal of the Century presents a counter-narrative where Iran actually does the world a service by charting a course out of the treacherous shoals of Western-induced fear and mistrust, and leading the negotiations onto a path that provides a meaningful chance for peace and stability in a region of the world otherwise plagued by tragedy and war.