The American Iranian Council was founded in 1990 with the goal of furthering dialogue and understanding between the United States and Iran. It is incorporated as a [501 C (3)] nonprofit and nonpartisan educational organization to provide research, policy analysis, public education, and community mobilization. The Council is tax exempt and accepts no money from any government, including the governments of Iran and the United States. Our funding sources include corporations, foundations, and individuals. Because of its tax-deductible nature, AIC’s financial records are open to public inspection and they are publicly available. Transparency is a key operating principle of our organization.
Mission
The mission of the AIC provides for a sustainable dialogue and a more comprehensive understanding of US-Iran relations. The AIC organizes and promotes the Iranian-American community and encourages its participation in the efforts for a more democratic, transparent, mutually respectful, and sustainable relationship between the two countries. The AIC also promotes the conditions for the development of Iran through increased national dialogue, charitable works, and international exchange. The AIC is to be a catalyst for positive change in the relationship between the United States and Iran through bringing each of these two great countries together by promoting truth, understanding and dialogue, especially with respect to those values held in common by both governments and peoples. Our mission is to help overcome many of the key misunderstandings, misperceptions and mischaracterizations that exist in this relationship. Our mission is to help those who believe that our two countries have a bright future, one in which the governments and peoples can learn, share and grow with one another.
Vision
It is the vision of the AIC that the United States and Iran should and will work together, as their common interests far outweigh their differences. The AIC believes that the United States and Iran will eventually come to appreciate what they have in common, what they have to offer one another, what they can gain from greater appreciation and respect for one other. All countries have committed actions that, in retrospect, are not always in their best interest or are not without ethical issue. It is as impossible for a country to be perfect as it is for a person to be so. It is possible, however, for a country to hold itself to a high standard, to try to do better, and to learn from past errors. The relationship between two countries, much like that between two people, will sometimes require the parties to acknowledge past errors or grievances and, with that appreciation, move forward. The United States and Iran not only have shared interests, but they also have an ethical obligation to work together for the betterment of both governments and their peoples.
Senator Joe Biden speaking at a 2002 aic event
The AIC is not a political organization or political party and as such it takes no political positions and is not organized to take or share in state power anywhere. As a civil society organization, the Council’s focus is on public policy, which we hope to influence through research, education, and mobilization. It is impossible to separate the history of the AIC from its mission. This mission focuses upon bringing the two countries together through improved understanding and dialogue. The AIC seeks to help policymakers and citizens improve their understanding of those two great countries and their long, sometimes difficult, relationship. In order for the AIC to be a positive catalyst for a change, it must have relevant programs.
Accomplishments
AIC has facilitated major breakthroughs in US-Iran relations through AIC events or mediated through the Council. Examples include:
- Secretary Madeleine Albright’s historic speech on Iran, when she expressed regret about 1953 coup and past US policy mistakes, lifted sanctions on carpets and food items, and offered Iran a global settlement. Years later, Iran’s President Mohammad Khatami would characterize this initiative as a “missed opportunity”;
- Vice President Joe Biden’s and Senator John Kerry’s proposals for dialogue between the US Congress and the Iranian Parliament;
- Meeting among Speaker Mehdi Karubi and other members of the Iranian parliament and their American counterparts in New York City;
- US-Iran dialogue over Iraq and the so-called Grand Bargain initiative;
- The American Iranian Council’s presence in Iran under a rare OFAC license;
- President Obama’s humanitarian attention to Iran’s civilian airline tragedies and his Administration’s agreement to entertain a proposal from Iran to purchase spare parts from the United States
- Release of American hikers Sarah Shourd, Shane Bauer and Joshua Fattal; and
- Introduction of the Shield Iranian-Americans from Sanctions (SIAS) as a civil rights project.
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