Iran gives cautious welcome to Barack Obama video message

[babylonsister]

http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2009/03/20/obama-s-shrewd-message-to-iran.aspx

Obama's Shrewd Message to Iran


At the end of a shaky week on the domestic front, Barack Obama's shrewd video message to the Iranian people serves as an exciting reminder of this president's foreign-policy potential. Even Tehran's brutal regime can't ignore public opinion at home, and Obama's ability to influence opinion abroad is a powerful new weapon in America's post-Bush diplomatic arsenal. (Consider how absurd Bush would sound issuing the three-minute video's closing line, "Thank you, and Eid-eh Shoma Mobarak.") Obama's critics may deride his popularity as based on nice speeches. But just as those nice speeches overpowered Hillary Clinton and John McCain, and they hold the real potential of outfoxing Iran's leaders.

To be sure, this holiday greeting speech may not dent public opinion in Iran. (It's not as though Iranians haven't been listening to Obama for months already, and today's message said nothing new of substance.) But Obama has another audience here: an international one. If and when the time comes when he finds himself seeking harsh new sanctions--and conceivably even support for military action--against Iran to halt its nuclear program, America will have far more leverage if Obama can say that he made good-faith efforts at dialogue and was rebuffed. Thus, every gesture like today's gives the U.S. more credibility around the world, and puts the Iranians on the defensive if they don't reciprocate. Which may be why Tehran is responding in such a muddled and uncertain fashion.

--Michael Crowley

*****************************************************

Iran gives cautious welcome to Barack Obama video message

Aide to Iranian president urges US to end sanctions and drop its support for Israel

Video at link~

Iran today hailed an unprecedented direct appeal by the US president, Barack Obama, for better relations between the two countries, but urged the US to "realise its previous mistakes" as well as end sanctions and drop its support for Israel.

Aliakbar Javanfekr, an aide to the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, welcomed the approach from Washington.

"The Iranian nation has shown that it can forget hasty behaviour," he said, "but we are awaiting practical steps by the United States."

The new US administration needed a "fundamental change in attitude", he said. But Iran would "not show its back" to Obama if the US put its words into practice.

"By fundamentally changing its behaviour, America can offer us a friendly hand. So far what we have received have been unfriendly fists. Unlimited sanctions which still continue and have been renewed by the United States are wrong and need to be reviewed," he said.

more...

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/20/barack-obama-iran-message

[Thrill]

1. Soon the Iranian people will start to blame their leaders

Obama is very shrewd

[RaleighNCDUer]

2. The Iranian people were already blaming their leaders, and

then Bushco went and declared them to be part of the so-called axis of evil, inducing the people to rally behind their government.

Now who could have predicted that?