The West's Preventative Capitulation
Der Spiegel / Amir Taheri
03-May-2009 (2 comments)

America wants to engage with Tehran and offer concessions over its nuclear program. President Ahmadinejad will naturally swear not to build any nuclear weapons. But his promises will be worth little, because Iran in the long term wants to be a great power -- and for that it will need the bomb.

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Q

I get it Ostaad, very funny!

by Q on Mon May 04, 2009 04:09 AM PDT

Taheri trying his best to stay relevant in a world that has moved way past this kind of opportunistic charlatanry.


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Ostaad

Amir Taheri's article is brilliant...

by Ostaad on Sun May 03, 2009 03:19 PM PDT

I have read Amir's pieces since he was writing for Keyhan during the Shah. Disagreed with him on many many subjects. But this article shows Amir Taheri's depth and breadth of knowledge and understanding of the "Iranian affairs".

He draws on his neo-con core feelings by writing: 

"Why is Iran so fixated on a nuclear program? The issue has three layers:

 

  • The power struggle in Tehran. Ahmadinejad has built his macho image
    on the nuclear issue. If he backs down, he would be politically dead.

 

  • The regime's strategy for hegemony in the Middle East. The Islamic Republic needs tactical "nuclear parity" to:
    • guarantee that it won't be attacked with nuclear weapons as it proceeds to drive the Americans out of the Middle East
    • question the right of Israel to exist as a Jewish state, and
    • impose Khomeinism on the Arabs in the name of Islamic unity.

 

  • Tehran's ambitions, spelled out by Ahmadinejad and others, to
    create an international coalition to challenge the global system
    dominated by the United States.

Ahmadinejad has already promised "full support and protection" to
anti-American regimes in Latin America against the "Great Satan" in
Washington. Iran is laying the foundation for an armaments industry in
Venezuela. One day a nuclear-armed Islamic Republic may extend its
nuclear umbrella to Venezuela, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Paraguay, Ecuador
and -- why not -- Cuba."

Taheri's agruement is the rehash of routine and unsubstantiated "talking points" developed by the neo-cons, domestic and fogreign, to demonize and intimidate Iran and the Iranians - the neo-cons are casterated but they're not dead, yet.

Taheri has managed to bring out topics that non-Irnanian commentator would simply miss due to the lack of the kind of intimate knowledge that Taheri has about the Iranian society. For example:

"Those familiar with Iranian military capabilities know that it is
Safavi's sober assessment, and not Jaafari's bluster, that reflects the
true situation. Jaafari can make his claim only because he, and his
political masters in Tehran, are convinced there will be no military
action1) against their regime."

Realy profound, haz kardam.

 

 


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