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Iran Is Not About to Become America's Friend

(Foreign Policy) David Rothkopf - The administration's good first-term toughness toward Iran on nuclear sanctions was followed by a second-term hunger for a nuclear deal that was so great that everyone from Tehran to Toledo, Ohio, now believes that the U.S. wants the deal more than the Iranians do and has lost negotiating leverage as a result. The negotiations will only work if we practice the kind of diplomacy that is not undercut by messages that we need the deal more than the other side does. The Iran nuclear talks have also taken a toll on the deteriorating relationship with Israel. It is undeniable that the White House has poured gasoline on the flames that have all but incinerated the traditional foundations of the relationship. The fact that America's relations with every important country in the region are worse with the exception of Iran is telling. We should not be naive. We need to push back hard on the idea that somehow Iran is about to become our friend. The nuclear threat is just one of the many threats it poses.
2015-03-31 00:00:00
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