Editing Stephen Walt (section)

===Iran===
Walt has frequently criticized America's policy with respect to [[Iran]]. In 2011, Walt told an interviewer that the American reaction to an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador in the United States "might be part of a larger American diplomatic effort to put Iran on the hot seat."<ref name=pri>{{cite web|last=Werman|first=Marco|title=Skepticism over Iranian Terrorist Plot|url=http://www.pri.org/stories/2011-10-14/skepticism-over-iranian-terrorist-plot|publisher=PRI|access-date=3 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140104022023/http://www.pri.org/stories/2011-10-14/skepticism-over-iranian-terrorist-plot|archive-date=2014-01-04|url-status=live}}</ref> In December 2012, Walt wrote, "Washington continues to insist on a near-total Iranian capitulation. And because Iran has been effectively demonized here in America, it would be very hard for President Obama to reach a compromise and then sell it back home."<ref name="dipset">{{cite web|last=Keck|first=Zachary|title=The Interview: Stephen M. Walt|url=https://thediplomat.com/2012/12/the-interview-stephen-m-walt/?allpages=yes|work=The Diplomat|access-date=3 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131230234951/https://thediplomat.com/2012/12/the-interview-stephen-m-walt/?allpages=yes|archive-date=2013-12-30|url-status=live}}</ref>

Walt said in November 2013, "Americans often forget just how secure the United States is, especially compared with other states," thanks to its power, resources, and geography, and thus "routinely blows minor threats out of all proportion. I mean: Iran has a defense budget of about $10 billion... yet we manage to convince ourselves that Iran is a Very Serious Threat to US vital interests. Ditto the constant fretting about minor-league powers like Syria, North Korea, Muammar al-Qaddafi's Libya, and other so-called 'rogue states.'" Therefore, whatever happens in the Middle East, "the United States can almost certainly adjust and adapt and be just fine."<ref name=stories/>