Dr Anahita Motazed Rad

Dr Anahita Motazed Rad is a former Visiting Senior Fellow in the Department of International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and a former Associate Fellow at the LSE Middle East Centre. Before joining LSE, she was an Assistant Professor of Politics and International Relations in Iran.

Her research focuses on Iran's foreign policy, Middle East geopolitics, regional security and the evolving international order. Her work examines Iran's strategic behaviour and security policies, regional power dynamics, and how geopolitical and geoeconomic shifts shape the foreign policies of Middle Eastern states. She also has a longstanding research interest in women's political representation and their participation in diplomacy and foreign policy, which she further developed through her involvement in the Women in Diplomacy initiative at LSE IDEAS.

Dr Motazed Rad has served as Vice-President of the Iranian International Studies Association (IISA) since 2018 and has collaborated with several international research institutions, including the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) in Rome, the UN Centre in Tehran and the Institute for Political and International Studies (IPIS) in Iran. She also provides political analysis and commentary for policy publications, including Oxford Analytica, and international media outlets.

Her recent publications include Iran 2024–2025: Strategic Retrenchment amid Regional Setbacks and Systemic Pressures (Asia Maior, 2026), Women in Diplomacy in the Gulf Region: Iran and the UAE in Comparative Perspective (The Hague Journal of Diplomacy, 2026), and The Middle East in the Light of International Order Strategies, Past and Present (LSE IDEAS, 2024).