Politics scuttles plan to put US diplomats in Iran

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Bush administration has shelved plans to set up a diplomatic outpost in Iran, in part over fears it could affect the U.S. presidential race or be interpreted as political meddling, The Associated Press has learned.

The proposal to send U.S. diplomats to Tehran for the first time in three decades attracted great attention when it was floated over the summer, but has now been placed on indefinite hold as November's election nears and Iran continues to defy demands to halt suspect nuclear activities, officials told the AP.

Two administration officials familiar with the matter spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal administration deliberations on the sensitive subject.

The officials said a decision had been made to leave the decision to the next U.S. president because it could be seen as a reward for Iran's nuclear intransigence, especially when Iran policy has become a key part of the heated campaign between Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain.



Read more: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i2rkbsSaYg26p7AlgI_KwhpHDSGgD93JO1PO0

[Solly Mack]

1. shakes head

[shadowknows69]

2. I need a vacation from this reality

Ah, there's my bong.

[Bushies gotta go]

3. Oh, we couldn't have that now, could we?

Gee, it might sound too much like Barack is right....

[ohio2007]

4. third world Cold War continues

Tehran Rejects Bahrain's Call to Bring Israel in from Cold
TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran rejected the Bahraini foreign minister's call for a new regional grouping which would include Israel as well as Arab states, Iran and Turkey.


http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8707131254

[DallasNE]

5. This Will Not Go Unnoticed By Iran

They will respond. We just don't know how. It could come in the form of shipping more IED's into Iraq and the killing of more US soldiers. It could take other forms. Just look at what happened in North Korea (restarted nuclear program) when we backed out on a promise there. Playing the game of my lunatic is better than your lunatic is stupid and dangerous.

[ronnie624]

7. There is no evidence of IEDs from Iran.

These claims originate exclusively from the Bush Administration.


The previous pattern had been that U.S. and British officials suggest that Iranian government involvement in the use by Sunni insurgents or Shiite militias of "shaped charges" that can penetrate U.S. armored vehicles is the only logical conclusion that could be drawn from the facts. But when asked point blank, they admit that they have no evidence to support it.

That charge serves not just one administration objective but two: it provides an additional justification for aggressive rhetoric and pressures against Tehran and also suggests that Iran bears much of the blame for the sectarian violence in Baghdad and high levels of U.S. casualties from IEDs.

<http://www.antiwar.com/orig/porter.php?articleid=10339>


On Sunday 11 February, after days of press leaks, US military officials in Baghdad made allegations of high-level Iranian Government involvement in the supply of weapons and training to Iraqi insurgents. Most of these allegations centred on the increasing sophistication of 'improvised explosive devices' (IEDs) used as roadside bombs by Iraqi insurgents targeting US military convoys. The 'evidence' produced to support these claims in fact amounted to little more than assertion. Perhaps the most interesting aspect is the gap between what we had been promised and what was actually unveiled. Months earlier, it has been excitedly reported that there was 'smoking-gun evidence of Iranian support for terrorists in Iraq: brand-new weapons fresh from Iranian factories.'<1>

When it came to it, on 11 February, the 'senior US defence analyst' presenting the 'evidence' said (in an apparently little-reported admission - see end of briefing) that there was 'no "smoking gun" linking Tehran and Iraqi militants'.

<http://www.zmag.org/znet/viewArticle/2028>


In his press briefing this week, President Bush said “with certainty” that the Qods forces are giving these weapons to fighters for use against American troops. The only question, he claimed, was whether the leaders of the Iranian government at the highest level directly told them to do so.

But this claim was intentionally framed to duck the key issue of who the Iranians are really arming and why.

First, as the University of Michigan professor and blogger Juan Cole has noted, there’s a logical disconnect in these charges, since the Iranians are supporting their Iraqi Shi’a co-religionists and most U.S. casualties are at the hands of the Sunni insurgents they oppose. So are we supposed to believe that Iran is arming its mortal enemies, the Sunnis?

<http://thehill.com/josh-marshall/bushs-dubious-case-against-iran-2007-02-16.html>


For 18 months, the administration of US President George W Bush has periodically raised the charge that Iran is supplying anti-coalition forces in Iraq with arms.

Previously, high administration officials have always admitted that they had no real evidence to support these claims. Now, they are going further. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told reporters on her current Middle Eastern trip, "I think there is plenty of evidence that there is Iranian involvement with these networks that are making high-explosive IEDs

However, Rice failed to provide any evidence of official Iranian involvement.

<http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/IA18Ak02.html>

[ronnie624]

6. No Official Israeli Reaction to Bahraini Proposal on Regional Organization

Israel had no formal reaction Wednesday night to the Bahrain foreign minister's suggestion that all Middle East nations - including Israel and Iran - form a regional organization. A senior official in Jerusalem said it was an "interesting idea," but one that would almost certainly not get off the ground.

<http://www.jewishelpaso.org/page.aspx?id=185615>

[justaregularperson]

8. U.S. shelves diplomatic plans for Iran

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON - The Bush administration has shelved plans to set up a diplomatic outpost in Iran, in part over fears it could affect the U.S. presidential race or be interpreted as political meddling, The Associated Press has learned.



Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27019486/

---

Two days after Joe Biden was able to cream Palin's assertion against Obama the White House scraps their diplomatic efforts so not to affect the Republican's chances of winning.

Just incredible that our foreign policy changes and war is risked simply because the administration does not want to weaken a McCain/Palin talking point.

[Demeter]

9. Incredible That They Would Show Any Thought For Consequences At All

and to start at such a late date, too.

[redqueen]

10. Love the spin... it's because of unmet demands... not the fact that it'd prove Barack right.

Think Brokaw will ask the candidates about this?

[dixiegrrrrl]

11. Suspending things..it's the Republican Way.