Our View :Talking with Enemies Much Better than Not
Editorial by the Iowa City Press Citizen published on October 13, 2008
In order to regain confidence in its intelligence-gathering capabilities, in order to avert initiating another ill-prepared and potentially destabilizing military action in the Middle East, the U.S. needs to reestablish diplomatic connections -- at all levels -- with Iran.
That was the consensus opinion of retired colonels Richard Klass (U.S. Air Force) and William Hauser (U.S. Army) when they addressed the Press-Citizen Editorial Board on Thursday on behalf of the non-partisan Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. Joined by David Drake of the Iowa Chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility, Klass and Hauser were adamant that the Bush administration's reluctance to hold significant talks with the Iranians is counterproductive to its goals of encouraging democracy in the region.
Too many Americans have an image of Iran frozen in 1979 and 1980, during the Iranian revolution and the U.S. Hostage Crisis. But that image doesn't represent the dramatic social transformation taking place in Iran in the 21st century. Beyond the ranting of Iran's rhetorically bombastic but politically powerless president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian population is much more U.S. friendly with a majority having been born after the revolution.
Drake reports, for example, that many of the Iranians he met on his recent travels basically told him, "Bush is bad, but the U.S. is good." And Interfaith Peace Groups recently spent two weeks in Iran and received a warm reception -- an indication that dialogue at other levels can succeed.
Rather than further ostracize the Iranians or heap on unhelpfullabels like "axis of evil," Klass said, the U.S. needs to begin a process of reconciliation similar to what has been happening between the U.S. and Vietnam over the past two decades -- a process in which John McCain, as a veteran of the Vietnam War, has played a key role. Only through increasing the numbers of personal, business, cultural, educational and political exchanges can the U.S. and Iran eventually wear down their mutual distrust and begin to establish diplomatic common ground. It's also the only way to ensure that U.S. intelligence estimates in the region are based more on credible sources than on the exaggerated claims of lying leaders or power-seeking exiles.
Hauser said he was hopeful that McCain, if elected U.S. president, would be much more willing to open talks with Iran than his current campaign rhetoric would imply -- despite the number of advisers that McCain would hold over from the Bush administration.
Both retired military men supported Barack Obama's contention that meeting with our enemies -- even on the presidential level -- in no way needs to legitimize our enemies' governments or policies.
"Let's put it this way," Klass said. "We don't agree with (Obama); he agrees with us."
{}The issue
* Two former military officers, who now are with the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, say that the U.S. needs to re-establish diplomatic talks with Iran at all levels.
{}We suggest
* We agree with the officers -- as well as with Barack Obama -- that talking with our enemies is much better than not talking to them.
{}What do you think?
* Send letters to opinion@press-citizen.com
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