Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
When the United States and Israel launched the war on Iran, Trump urged Iranians to rise up and rid themselves of their tyrannical rulers. Weeks later, the Iranian regime remains firmly in place.
The historian Stephen Kotkin has spent decades thinking about how autocratic regimes function, how they survive, and how they come to an end. In the latest episode of “The Foreign Affairs Interview," Kotkin discusses the weakness of strongman rulers and considers the future of the Islamic Republic.
When the United States and Israel launched the war on Iran, Trump urged Iranians to rise up and rid themselves of their tyrannical rulers. Weeks later, the Iranian regime remains firmly in place.
The historian Stephen Kotkin has spent decades thinking about how autocratic regimes function, how they survive, and how they come to an end. In the latest episode of “The Foreign Affairs Interview," Kotkin discusses the weakness of strongman rulers and considers the future of the Islamic Republic.
