In Iran, people are hoping for political détente from the new US President Joe Biden, for him to abandon the maximum pressure policy of his predecessor Donald Trump and for him to return to the nuclear deal. For on top of the tough sanctions weighing heavily on the economy, the Corona pandemic is depressing sentiment in Iran.

The sanctions drove inflation to over 30 per cent, with a huge impact especially on the middle class and the poor - a good 50 per cent of Iranians live below the poverty line.

But in contrast to the policies of outgoing President Hassan Rohani, who is considered moderate, parliament and the intellectual leadership seem to be more focused on escalation. Before Joe Biden's inauguration, the Atmo deal is effectively also cancelled by Iran - through a 20 per cent uranium enrichment. Iran's Supreme and Religious Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has also banned negotiations, for example, on Iran's missile programme. One year after their last report in Tehran, our reporters wanted to know how the Iranians are reacting to the new circumstances in Washington these days.