Wednesday 2 November 2011

US POLITICS BEHIND IRAN-MEXICO PLOT

Three points to consider for those disputing that the Iran-Mexico assassination plot was manufactured.

A) Why would Obama's opponents take the administration to task on an issue about which they feel much stronger than he does? On the contrary, it is Obama's opponents that have pushed the administration toward a hard line on Iran. Republican opponents want even tougher line on Iran than Obama has been pursuing. Given the grass roots movement against the financial elites and given the lingering effects of the recession on the broader middle classes and workers, the Republicans as well as many Democrats are following the long-standing tradition of distracting public attention from domestic issues to foreign affairs, and the dangers of 'terrorism' and the need to continue the futile 'war on terror'.

B) Israeli press is reporting (3 November 2011) that the government is now considering a preemptive strike against Iran's nuclear energy program, a move that according to reports has the US pondering how to respond. My guess is that Tel Aviv will not take such a decisive step unless Washington gives the green light. If it does so, especially now that Syria has accepted the terms dictated by the Arab League to stop military operations against the rebels and to dialogue into some sort of transition, the US will have the sole responsibility for creating greater instability in the Middle East, to say nothing of how Iran may respond militarily, and how Turkey responds given its tense relations with Israel.  

C) If there is hard evidence of Iranian government involvement in the assassination plot, why has the US government not come forth with it, so that it has the political upper hand globally, and so that it can justify "any action that may be on table"? Moreover, why is the US pursuing third-party channels to dialogue with Iran? On 2 November 2011, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated that he had 100 "undeniable documents" proving the United States has been behind "terrorist acts" in Iran and the Middle East. While such documents may not have much credibility in the US and probably in most of the Western World, they will have weight in Africa and Asia among Muslims.


No comments: