It’s far too early to forecast whether the Rowhani administration will be able to manage the long-term foreign-policy outlook of Iran in the fluid circumstances of the region and the geopolitical landscape. But for him and the reformists, success will ultimately be defined as the protection and enhancement of Iran’s core foreign-policy priorities, all while creating the conditions where détente and rapprochement can happen with the great powers—the most consequential of course being the United States. Thus, the broader Iranian outlook may remain the same, but the reaction of Washington—and the shape of any policy changes towards Iran—will be central in determining the execution of Iranian foreign policy.

Reza Sanati is a research fellow at the Middle East Studies Center and a PhD candidate at the School of International and Public Affairs at Florida International University.