by Zalman Shoval
"Out of
the frying pan and into the fire" is apparently the most apt description
of the bloody conflict in Iraq between Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's
Shiites, backed by Iran, and the radical jihadist faction of al-Qaida
Sunnis, known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). This
is not a typical civil war, nor is it merely a religious war between
Sunnis and Shiites, but a zero-sum war between two Islamic blocs
competing for hegemony in the entire Middle East.
The quick successes on
the ground by the Sunni jihadists against al-Maliki's crumbling forces
are evidence of mistaken American foreign policy since the time of
George H. W. Bush's first Gulf War, to the second Gulf War waged by his
son, George W. Bush, to Barack Obama's pullout of U.S. troops, his
incorrect responses to the "Arab Spring" and his decision to end the war
on terror. All of these together contributed to the growth and spread
of Islamist terrorists throughout the Middle East and North Africa --
including Iraq and Syria.
The United States,
however, is on the verge of yet another misstep, one which will have
dangerous and far-reaching consequences that go way beyond the Iraq
issue. As much as the following script sounds absurd, there are voices
in Washington, on both sides of the political fence, who want to join
forces with Iran to fight the Sunni Islamists threatening to roll
through Baghdad, and who justify their desire with the tired explanation
that "the enemy of your enemy is your friend."
U.S. Secretary of State
John Kerry said Washington is "open to discussions" with Tehran if the
Iranians can help end the violence and take steps that would restore
confidence in the Iraqi government.
Jumping to promote the
idea, as expected, were members of pro-Iranian lobby in the U.S. headed
by Flynt Leverett and his wife Hillary Mann Leverett, former CIA
"experts" on the Middle East and the National Security Council, and
Seyed Mohammad Marandi, an American-Iranian academic who openly supports
the Iranian nuclear program. Even more surprising were comments made by
hawkish Republican Senator (and outspoken friend of Israel) Lindsey
Graham, that the U.S. should cooperate with Iran to prevent it from
becoming "the big winner in Iraq." In contrast, Senator John McCain, the
Republican presidential candidate in 2008 and someone who customarily
sees eye to eye with Graham, responded by saying that "U.S. and Iranian
interests and goals do not align in Iraq" and "the United States should
be seeking to minimize greater Iranian involvement in Iraq right now,
not encouraging it."
Meanwhile, there is no
doubt that ISIS, which, incidentally, grew in strength due to a lack of
adequate American support for secular elements struggling against Syrian
President Bashar Assad -- is the sworn enemy of the United States and
the West in general. However, the claim that this necessarily justifies
cooperation with Iran is foolish and immoral. There are no good guys or
bad guys here, rather two unequivocally bad sides. One of these sides,
Iran, is striving to acquire nuclear weapons and has threatened to
commit genocide; it is a country headed by a regime that is the world's
primary exporter of terrorism and whose interests and ambitions are
completely contradictory to the interests and hopes of the free world.
Additionally, it is also clear that the moderate Sunni world, even with
all its reservations toward the Iraqi jihadists, will not be
particularly thrilled over the budding romance between the U.S. and
Shiite Iran. Indeed, it is a choice between two evils, but we can hope
that American policy makers have enough foresight to correctly diagnose
the dilemma they are currently facing.
The real American
interest is so transparent and obvious, that one would need blinders not
to see it. Moreover, the warming of relations with the U.S. -- and this
will be the immediate outcome of American-Iranian synergy -- will grant
further legitimacy to the ayatollah's regime, strengthen its hand in
nuclear negotiations and will lead to the permanent deployment of
Iranian military forces in Iraq, meaning the "Eastern Front" will draw
even nearer to the Jordanian and Israeli borders.
Another by-product is
the shot of encouragement Hezbollah will receive in Lebanon and Syria.
It is normally ill-advised for Israel, when it comes to its diplomatic
and public relations campaigns, to publicly voice its views on the
policies of its American friend, but in all areas pertaining to Iran,
this hesitation does not exist.
Zalman Shoval
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_opinion.php?id=8857
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
No comments:
Post a Comment