This entry was posted on
Monday, April 2nd, 2007 at
10:34 am and is filed
under It’s War! It’s Legal! It’s Lovely!.
Happily, the only things I feel necessary to add to the current Iranian debate have already been said:
The Independent – Leading article: Time for a new approach in an effort to end this stand-off with Iran: But there is a bigger problem here than clumsy diplomacy. Quite simply, Iran is holding most of the cards. Because of the catastrophe in Iraq, the UK has no real diplomatic leverage in the region. Tony Blair calls the Iranian action illegal in international law and cites the United Nations mandate for the presence of British forces in Iraq. But the US and Britain invaded Iraq ignoring the will of the UN. The former UN secretary general, Kofi Annan, called the action illegal. Mr Blair has little moral authority when he cites international law now. It is notable that the UN statement stopped short of deploring the Iranian action, as requested by Britain. It also makes no mention of Security Council resolution 1723 that authorises the coalition presence in Iraq. The wounds opened by the foolish invasion of Iraq by the US and the UK have not healed.
Terry Jones – Call that humiliation? (via): I share the outrage expressed in the British press over the treatment of our naval personnel accused by Iran of illegally entering their waters. It is a disgrace. We would never dream of treating captives like this – allowing them to smoke cigarettes, for example, even though it has been proven that smoking kills. And as for compelling poor servicewoman Faye Turney to wear a black headscarf, and then allowing the picture to be posted around the world – have the Iranians no concept of civilised behaviour? For God’s sake, what’s wrong with putting a bag over her head?
(Psst! Here’s a link for those who came in late.)
OpEd News – Battle Plans for Iran (via): Step by step, Iran is being set up for war. What difference does the provocation make? The determination to consolidate the oil reserves in the Caspian Basin was made more than a decade ago and is clearly articulated in the policy papers produced by the Project for the New American Century (PNAC) The Bush administration is one small province away from realizing the its dream of controlling the world’s most valued resource. They won’t let that opportunity pass them by.
By tyger April 2, 2007 - 6:40 pm
I think it's a pretty dire situation. And the only reason the Iranian's have had the opportunity to play this game is that we fucked everything up by following Bush into Iraq, but I think we need to remember that Tehran remains one of the most despotic right-wing governments in the world.They also have previous with regard to abducting foreign nationals. We should not equate them with a legitimate, liberal government.
By Manic April 3, 2007 - 9:45 am
"Tehran remains one of the most despotic right-wing governments in the world"I won't be forgetting that in a hurry… but neither will I forget that certain legitimate/liberal governments have a habit of supporting* despotic right-wing governments when it suits them. (*Or it is 'toppling'? It's easy to lose track if you don't keep up.)Neither will I be forgetting what the surrender of our moral authority has cost us.
By tyger April 3, 2007 - 4:21 pm
Ah yes, but Robin Cook was sacked wasn't he?
By goatchurch April 4, 2007 - 4:29 pm
What do you mean, "despotic right-wing government"? Do they go around smashing the unions, promoting racism, privatizing social security and invading defenseless nations whenever they get the chance? Do be more clear.
By tyger April 4, 2007 - 5:02 pm
What would you like defining goatchurch?They are despotic (un-elected, all powerful, theocratic leadership)Horribly rightwing (racist? er yes. Intolerant of women? er yes aggressive towards internal ethnic minorities? er yes. lead by a rabid conservative? er yes. – I could go on and on, seriously)I suppose one could contest whether this cabal of religious zealots could be defined as a government, though.