The western media has given credit for the historic highest-level US-Iran contact to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and the war-mongering Grinch Netanyahu. No doubt, all three played their parts on the world-stage but the credit for preparing the groundwork goes to Iran’s Spiritual Leader Ayatullah Ali Khamenei and the former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
“Many attribute Iran’s recent “charm offensive” toward the West to the election of President Hassan Rouhani. Upon closer look, it appears that the intrasigent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the uncompromising Ali Khamenei were in fact the ones who opened the way for the current breakthrough,” wrote Elie Chalhoub at Lebanese daily Al Akhbar, on September 30, 2013.
Well before President Hassan Rouhani decided to run for elections, in a 21 March 2013 speech, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei began to draw the outlines of a more flexible stance on his country’s nuclear program. Khamenei called this new approach “revolutionary flexibility” or “heroic flexibility,” saying that “flexibility is useful – and sometimes necessary.”
In the course of his speech, the supreme leader expressed the Islamic Republic’s willingness to place the country’s nuclear activities under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in return for recognizing Iran’s right to enrich uranium and carry on with its peaceful nuclear program.
On September 3, President Rouhani also said that Iran’s right for uranium enrichment for civilian usage is not for negotiable.
Manila-based political analyst and author, Richard Javad Heydarian believes that it’s the 2005 mutual defense treaty signed by Ahmadinejad and Assad which forced US military generals not to go along with Obama and start a new unending war for Israel.
“Bound by its 2005 mutual defense treaty with Syria, Iran would have been under considerable pressure to respond to any aggression against the Assad regime, its sole regional ally. And given the alleged presence of Iranian military and technical personnel in Syria, a U.S. strike could have very well led to direct Iranian casualties, thus emboldening hardliners in Tehran to escalate Iran’s confrontation with the West and push the moderate President Hassan Rouhani to the sidelines,” says Heydarian. Read more of his views here.
After this ‘ice breaking’ 15-minute telephone pleasantries between Obama and Rouhani, some Israeli Liberals and Jewish media outlets, have started saying that a US-Iran friendship could be good for Israel in the long run. They believe that what America couldn’t achieve bullying Iran, could be achieved under the cover of friendship.
Personally, I agree with American Jewish writer, blogger and author, Stephen Lendman, who said last month that no matter how “moderate” Hassan Rouhani proves himself to Obama, it’s not going to change US-Israel agenda of a pro-Israel regime change in Tehran.
Iran has been target of USrael’s military threats and terrorism since the 1979 Islamic Revolution which deposed King Reza Shah Pahlavi, USrael’s top ally in the region. America’s current Iran-bashing has nothing to do with Iran’s civilian nuclear program. It’s all about maintaining Israel’s military-nuclear supremacy in the Middle East. Judging by America’s past 34-year record, no rational person would trust the United States.
Who broke the ice between Iran and US | Rehmat's World
“Many attribute Iran’s recent “charm offensive” toward the West to the election of President Hassan Rouhani. Upon closer look, it appears that the intrasigent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the uncompromising Ali Khamenei were in fact the ones who opened the way for the current breakthrough,” wrote Elie Chalhoub at Lebanese daily Al Akhbar, on September 30, 2013.
Well before President Hassan Rouhani decided to run for elections, in a 21 March 2013 speech, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei began to draw the outlines of a more flexible stance on his country’s nuclear program. Khamenei called this new approach “revolutionary flexibility” or “heroic flexibility,” saying that “flexibility is useful – and sometimes necessary.”
In the course of his speech, the supreme leader expressed the Islamic Republic’s willingness to place the country’s nuclear activities under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in return for recognizing Iran’s right to enrich uranium and carry on with its peaceful nuclear program.
On September 3, President Rouhani also said that Iran’s right for uranium enrichment for civilian usage is not for negotiable.
Manila-based political analyst and author, Richard Javad Heydarian believes that it’s the 2005 mutual defense treaty signed by Ahmadinejad and Assad which forced US military generals not to go along with Obama and start a new unending war for Israel.
“Bound by its 2005 mutual defense treaty with Syria, Iran would have been under considerable pressure to respond to any aggression against the Assad regime, its sole regional ally. And given the alleged presence of Iranian military and technical personnel in Syria, a U.S. strike could have very well led to direct Iranian casualties, thus emboldening hardliners in Tehran to escalate Iran’s confrontation with the West and push the moderate President Hassan Rouhani to the sidelines,” says Heydarian. Read more of his views here.
After this ‘ice breaking’ 15-minute telephone pleasantries between Obama and Rouhani, some Israeli Liberals and Jewish media outlets, have started saying that a US-Iran friendship could be good for Israel in the long run. They believe that what America couldn’t achieve bullying Iran, could be achieved under the cover of friendship.
Personally, I agree with American Jewish writer, blogger and author, Stephen Lendman, who said last month that no matter how “moderate” Hassan Rouhani proves himself to Obama, it’s not going to change US-Israel agenda of a pro-Israel regime change in Tehran.
Iran has been target of USrael’s military threats and terrorism since the 1979 Islamic Revolution which deposed King Reza Shah Pahlavi, USrael’s top ally in the region. America’s current Iran-bashing has nothing to do with Iran’s civilian nuclear program. It’s all about maintaining Israel’s military-nuclear supremacy in the Middle East. Judging by America’s past 34-year record, no rational person would trust the United States.
Who broke the ice between Iran and US | Rehmat's World