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Op/ed diplomacy

Iranian President Rouhani’s appeal for constructive dialogue, published by the Washington Post last night, is a good deal more interesting, both for what it says and what it doesn’t say, than President Putin’s drivel, published by the New York Times a week ago.  Rouhani ends with an appeal:

I urge [my counterparts] to look beyond the pines and be brave enough to tell me what they see — if not for their national interests, then for the sake of their legacies, and our children and future generations.

This seemingly anodyne appeal is very much to the point in this context.  What Americans see “beyond the pines” is a serious threat that Iran might become a nuclear weapons state.  They don’t like that, because it would encourage further proliferation and render the balance of power in the region unstable, with possibly catastrophic consequences.  While Ken Pollack thinks we could manage the risks, there is overwhelming support in the United States for a preventive approach.  Iran, most Americans think, should not be permitted to build a nuclear weapon, or get so close to being able to build one that it could not be stopped.

On nuclear technology, Rouhani is admirably frank about Iran’s interest : Read more