Engagement's Betrayal
Washington,
Nov 4 -
Thirty years ago today, the U.S. Embassy in Tehran was stormed by radical Islamists. Fifty-two Americans were held for 444 days. The regime marks this date each year with rallies, "death to America" chants and the burning of the Stars and Stripes. This year is different. The opposition "Green Movement" is rebutting those slogans with their own "death to the dictator" chants. There are violent clashes in Tehran's streets.
At one protest, the crowd reportedly chanted, "Obama, Obama, you are either with us or with them." The Administration's actions are speaking loudly on that question. Reportedly it has cut back programs to assist brave Iranians seeking democracy. One Iran expert has noted that the Obama Administration views the democratic movement inside Iran "as a wrench in the works of nuclear negotiations" with the Iranian regime. Indeed, an op-ed in today's Wall Street Journal ("The President Snubs Iran's Democrats,") states that "Iranian cyberspace is brimming with anger at what the Green Movement sees as betrayal by the West...'Engagement' it turns out, is about nuclear weapons alone - no matter how many innocent Iranians are being beaten, tortured, raped and killed for expressing their hope for change."
Some believe that a singular focus on Iran's nuclear program is logical, given its threat to international security. But as noted by Shirin Ebadi - an Iranian lawyer and fellow Nobel Peace prize laureate of President Obama's - a focus on the Iranian regime's militant character is just as critical to U.S. security interests. "Imagine if the government actually promised to stop its nuclear program tomorrow. Would you trust this government not to start another secret nuclear program somewhere else?" Her message: engage Iran - but pay attention to the trampling of democracy and human rights (Washington Post editorial: "How to Engage Iran").
There's no guarantee that a democratic Iran would be nuclear weapons-free, but that happy state would be far more likely in an Iran not gripped by the Supreme Council. We know which way that's going. With the Obama Administration's failure to speak out against the regime's abuses, its tag-line "smart diplomacy" has failed to grasp the elementary lesson that promoting democracy in Iran and improving our national security go hand-in-hand.
