The United States and Iran stand at the most dangerous point in their four-decade adversarial relationship. President Trump has given Tehran 10 to 15 days to reach a “meaningful deal” on its nuclear program or face “really bad things,” while the Pentagon has assembled the largest concentration of air and naval power in the Middle East since the 2003 Iraq invasion.

The Islamic Republic of Iran entered 2026 facing its most severe multidimensional crisis in decades, battered by military strikes, economic collapse, regional setbacks, and unprecedented domestic unrest that threatens regime stability.