Back to Brief on Iran
On My Mind, Oh, Promise Me, The New York
Times, June 19
[The following is excerpts from an article by A.M. Rosenthal]
The Clinton policy for dealing with major dictatorships is now fully revealed in its magnificent simplicity -- speak softly, throw away sticks, drop gracefully to one knee, present gifts and sing "Oh, Promise Me."
For some years, the policy has been no secret to the dictators or those Americans who bother to pay attention. The results have been productive, no denying that....
But on Wednesday Secretary of State Albright added a high shine to Clintonian appeasement policy by including under its sheltering arms the Government of Iran. Yes indeed, the Iran that executed thousands of its own citizens, held 53 Americans hostage for 444 days in the U.S. Embassy, the same Iran that boasts of its infiltration of Bosnia, that killed Jews in Buenos Aires and almost daily sends to Damascus a planeload of weapons and funds for terrorists around the world.
As arranged, President Clinton, the Great Crooner himself, joined in the song, asking "a sense" that Iranians "are prepared" to turn away from terrorism and distribution of weapons. Just promise me a sense; national policy.
All this followed his decision not to apply sanctions against
Russia and France for providing the money to develop an Iranian gas field.
That was prelude and signal to Ms. Albright's offer to work with Iran on
a "road map" to friendship if only Iran would behave better; never mind
the murder and hate Iran has spread
around the word.
The proposal was supposedly made because Iranians elected a "moderate" as President. But the U.S. and every other nation knows that political, military and government power is not held in Iran by President Mohammad Khatami -- who incidentally spreads non-moderate hatred himself whenever in the mood.
Those powers are held by a regime of fundamentalist ayatollahs and their security armies, who turned the country into a hell for Iranians and the command post for international terrorism. As recently as March 25, Bruce Riedel, the top Iran officer for the National Security Council, said Iran was the "principal state sponsor" of terrorist groups in the Mideast.
The Clintonian rationalization will be that the choreographed overture to Iran is support for Iranians who voted for President Khatami. In truth, it will strengthen their tormentors, make it more difficult to overthrow them.
By pretending that the Iranian regime that lives by terrorism might end it, by absolving countries pouring money into the Government and therefore its killers and floggers, the U.S. announces it will not try to punish or even hamper the regime, and despite the past, would help it.
Why does Mr. Clinton do these things...?
Like most of America's allies and partners, trade is his overriding
goal in dealing with the dictatorships -- trade, not freedom, not human
rights, not principle....
Iranians' Struggle Isn't With U.S.; It's With Mullahs, Chicago Tribune, June 22
LYON, France -- The two U.S. fans were sitting in the hot seats, surrounded by Iranians yelling profane epithets and waving protest signs and pictures. UCLA students Jamie Cota and Alfredo Arguello, whose faces were painted red, white and blue, found themselves getting a lesson in international politics...
The flashpoints among the 44,000 at Gerland Stadium were ignited by differences between Iranians--the tens of thousands who came to protest against the current government, and the few who dared oppose them.
It was pro-government Hezbollah against the resistance People's Mujahadeen, and the French police were busy making sure that the battles between them were mainly verbal....
The resistance members knew the state-controlled Iranian network would be able to edit the pictures because it delays telecasts of live events. But they knew many Iranians would be watching the match on satellite broadcasts that would include their banners condemning the leader of the country's Islamic government, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and its president, Mohammad Khatami....
France's World Cup organizers vainly tried to depoliticize the match by enforcing what Mujahadeen spokesman Farzin Hashemi called measures unfit for a democratic country.
Those efforts were rendered meaningless. Once in the stadium, thousands of Iranian fans wore or waved T-shirts bearing the images of Massoud Rajavi, leader of the Mujahadeen, and his wife, Maryam, who has been declared president-in-exile. They pulled out banners inscribed "Death to Khamanei."
"We had two victories today," Hashemi said, "one for the soccer team,
and one for the Iranian people, who could see what we stand for."...