
Monkey wrench
The IRI has once again succeeded in playing the loosing hand, with
Iranian national interest as its usual first victim
March 11, 2002
The Iranian
The acting king of Saudi Arabia, Prince Abdullah's peace plan (a de facto recognition
of Israel) is gathering more and more converts as the date is approaching for its
presentation at the Arab Summit in Beirut. All the important Arab countries, Syria
included, have publicly announced their qualified backing of the plan. The Islamic
Republic of Iran, as usual, has hedged its bet by an ambiguous yes and a murky no.
The external President, Khatami, has initiated a yet another charm offensive/damage
control, sending emissaries to the European capitals, and Riyadh, declaring his "administration's"
general agreement with the outline of the Saudi peace initiative, with a few monkey
wrenches thrown in for good measure. While back home, the Old Guard is balking at
the plan and enumerating the fringe benefits of the continuation of the Palestinian
armed resistance by IRI's proxy groups.
Meanwhile, with the deployment of U.S. military "advisors"
to the Republic of Georgia, and Yemen, and with the all but in name, the relocation
of the U.S. Central Command from Florida to Bahrain in the Persian Gulf, and the
continuing military liaison with the Republic of Armenia, the noose is getting ever
tighter.
A swan song has begun to be heard, albeit faintly. A key note was played during the
recent state visit to IRI by the American supported Afghani Transitional Prime Minister,
Karzai. The permanent head of the Expediency Council and a recognized pillar of the
regime, Rafsanjani, who is in the habit of receiving any and all visiting foreign
dignitary, the head of the public works of the Burkina Faso included, was noticeably
absent from the itinerary of the visiting Karzai.
In a matter of days came Rafsanjani's public announcement of "Our problems with
the United States can be resolved on condition, as we have already said several times,
that they return our assets", in essence, stating that differences have never
been ideological, as has been portrayed by IRI, rather, it is only a matter of a
financial dispute. Finding no takers, he is back at playing up the irreconcilable
ideological differences in this Friday Prayer with a couple of veiled threats to
boot.
The IRI has once again succeeded in playing the loosing hand, with Iranian national
interest as its usual first victim. This time, even the-paid-for-fair-weather friend,
Syria, is abandoning the IRI. The recipient of enormous direct and indirect financial
grants, has sided with prudence. So have the Russians, who are taking a rather belligerent
attitude towards Tehran in regards to Caspian Sea oil.
The Pakistani military government, now firmly in the U.S. camp, is backing the recent
Turkmen president's declaration which was made during Karzai's state visit. The proposed
fifteen hundred mile long pipeline from Doulat-abad in Turkmenistan, through Afghanistan,
to Moultan in Pakistan, is in actuality, the reconstitution of an old plan, which
was negotiated with the Taliban and came to a grinding stop by the U.S. missile attack
against Al-Qaeda camps in 1998, during the Clinton Administration.
Iran's leaders have managed to place themselves in the
unenviable situation of being between a rock and a hard place. The rock being the
encirclement by the U.S. military, and a populace ready to welcome a liberator a
la Afghanistan. And the hard place being an indoctrinated small cadre, unwilling
to accept an ideological about-face, and a host of IRI barons, whose very survival
depends on a perpetual mayhem.
The logical, economical and safe transit route for the pipeline is through a democratic
Iran. The people of Iran are ready, able and willing to take charge of their destiny,
all they require is moral support and the secession of European powers' pussyfooting
with the IRI. The demise of this theocratic regime is an eventuality. Those who are
reaping short-term gains contrary to the Iranian nation's legitimate rights, are
selling their respective country's long-term interests for a pittance.
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