the initial speaker is robin wright, a longtime journalist with "the los angeles times." nauert a public policy scholar here at the center. one of our most valued experts on the middle east. >> thank you very much. for those of you who were here when we did our pre-election presentation, i ended on this slide, which turned out to be far more pressing and the nine new. so, where are we? the first week was clearly a big political showdown over the disputed election. the second week was about a physical confrontation as the state began to clamp down. most importantly, as the flashpoint move gone through the election to the powers of the supreme leader, now we are in the third week and we have begun the sorting out process politically and on the streets. i have 10 bottom lines to offer. my first is that a regime that came to power in this way faced its biggest challenge in 30 years in peaceful the sabaeans. it was a stunning development for iran and the entire middle east. their uprising needs to be understood in a global context. in other words, the past 20 days fit into a b

robin wright and the front. >> i have a question for friend. a couple of questions actually -- can you take a look or compare for us the kind of activism ec and the melon by man today resisted early days of the revolution when they had dreams of exporting and were a visibly helping a lot of groups on the eastern some golf and region as well deeper in the arab world and also compared with what the saudis are doing with a use of your own funds in promoting mosques in the region. it to what degree those to are trying to counter each other or in this really their own domestic agenda. >> i think there is opposed revolutionary time in that in the appeal or i ran's ideology it is time to sell is a mix of rejection as some, it can arguably called pan-arabism and there is an interesting quote from an official in has a love that's and iran foreign-policy is essentially sunni because iran has essentially coopted your ticket number and number of traditionally pan arab concerns and i think it's an interesting dynamic, no longer export a pure revolutionary s

robin wright. in the front here, katie. >> thanks i have a question for fred. couple of questions, actually. can you take a look or compare for us the kind of activism you see the meddling by iran today versus the early days of the revelation, when they had dreams of exporting and -- revolution, when they had dreams of exporting and were much -- were visibly helping a lot of groups, eastern saudi arabia, the eastern gulf, region as well as deeper in the arab world. and also, compare it with the what the oddies -- saudis are doing in promoting their own funds, promoting wahhbism, building mosquealize over the region and to what degree those two are trying to counter each other or is this really just their own domestic agenda. >> i think there's a qualitative difference between obviously the post-revolutionary period in that the appeal -- iran's ideology that it's trying to sell is a mix of rejectionism, it can arguably be called pan arabism. in fact there's an interesting quote from abofficial in hezbollah which said iran's foreign policy is essentially sunni be