Back to Brief on Iran
[Excerpts from a commentary by James E. Akins, former U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, also served in Kuwait and Iraq during his Foreign Service career]
For a quarter-century, U.S. policy was one of unconditional support for the shah of Iran. Iran became one of our "pillars of defense" in the Middle East. Our diplomats, our intelligence agencies and indeed our presidents were so beguiled by the shah that they were blind to unmistakable signs that his people had turned against him…
One year ago, … to the world's surprise and the consternation of the ruling mullahs, [Mohammad] Khatami won 70% of the votes, not so much because he was reputed to be a "moderate" but because he most certainly was not favored by the government. He was installed as president and he survives. Some U.S. policymakers and businessmen have attached much importance to his implied promises of reform and change. While some are no doubt sincere, others who argue for a softening of American sanctions on Iran may have colored their judgment by prospects of lucrative contracts for new oil and gas pipelines from the former Soviet Union through Iran to Turkey or the Persian Gulf.
The State Department is clearly divided. In an admitted effort to curry favor with the mullahs, one branch of the State Department branded as a "terrorist organization" the Moujahedeen Khalq, the largest of the Iranian opposition movements and the prime target of official Iranian terrorism at home and abroad. The mullahs welcomed the announcement as a triumph of their regime but did not answer it with any changes in internal or external policies. Not much later, another branch of the State Department ranked Iran as the "most active state sponsor of terrorism." …
Iranians revolted against the shah not to turn the clock back to the Middle Ages but because they were sickened by the corruption of his court and his government, by the lack freedom and by the excesses of the shah's secret police. Ayatollah Khomeini promised them a "government of God on earth," but he and his successor have given them a government whose corruption exceeds that of the shah and whose human rights abuses are an order of magnitude worse…
The Iranian people showed that they wanted an end to corruption and oppression. They hoped Khatami could bring it about, but he has shown he can do little. Now, after a year, all illusions about the new president have vanished and the mass of Iranians must look elsewhere for radical change. In almost daily demonstrations in Tehran and in all provincial capitals, the mullahs' favorite old chant, "Death to the Israel and America," has given way to shouts of "Death to Despotism."
The leader of the Iranian resistance, Massoud Rajavi, may well be right when he said recently, "The government of the mullahs is entering its final stage; the time to prepare for its overthrow has arrived." My enduring nightmare is that one of our major foreign policy blunders in the Middle East is about to be repeated in the same country. The United States supported the shah long after it was clear to every objective observer that almost all Iranians had turned against him. It would be ironic and tragic if we were to open relations with the Iranian theocracy just as the Iranian people have concluded that it must go.
Hard-liners call for Execution of Tehran's Meyer, Reuter, June 14
TEHRAN - Hard-liners calling for the execution of Tehran's beleaguered mayor were urged on Friday to calm their emotions as Iran's political struggle spilled over into weekly prayers.
A group in the overflow congregation of more than 5,000 worshippers at Tehran University thanked the judge trying Gholamhossein Karbaschi for corruption and chanted "Looter of the public property should be executed."
Prayer leader Emami Kashani, secretary of Iran's powerful Guardian Council, admonished the group.
"Care should be taken about slogans so as not to please the enemy," he said. "Affairs are undergoing procedures according to the law. An emotional approach should be avoided. We should avoid differences and minor problems and pay attention to the external enemy. Differences should not lead to hostility."
Graffiti signed Hizbollah has appeared on Tehran walls accusing the mayor of supporting the United States and being a plunderer.
Journalists Cancel U.S. Trip, Associated Press, June 14
TEHRAN - A group of Iranian journalists canceled a trip to the United States, apparently for fear of angering the hard-liners in the ruling clergy, a newspaper reported Sunday.
The eight journalists, including chief editors of Iran's main papers, were to leave for Washington D.C. this week to attend a June 17 seminar at the Middle East Institute on "Iran, America and Middle East Affairs," Farda newspaper said.
But they decided not to go because the trip became "politicized," Farda reported.
The journalists had been granted an interview with U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, which apparently put them in the difficult position of trying not to upset the hard-liners while not declining the audience with Albright.