by Boaz Bismuth
On July 14, 2015, the leading exporter of global terrorism received a stamp of legitimacy from the international community • The nuclear deal welcomes Iran into the family of nations -- and history won't forgive President Obama for this dangerous gamble.
U.S. President Barack Obama
announces the nuclear deal with Iran, Tuesday
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Photo credit: AP  |
On December 8, 1941, U.S. President Franklin
Delano Roosevelt delivered his "Day of Infamy" speech to Congress in
response to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, which was carried out
the day before.
"Yesterday, December 7, 1941 -- a date which
will live in infamy -- the United States of America was suddenly and
deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan,"
Roosevelt began. At the conclusion of his speech, Roosevelt asked
Congress to declare war on Japan, thrusting the United States into World
War II.
To paraphrase the words of Roosevelt, one
could say that yesterday, on July 14, 2015 -- a day that will live in
infamy -- the U.S. and other world powers finalized a terrible deal with Iran
that merely delays its acquisition of a nuclear bomb and abandons
America's allies in the Middle East -- Israel and Saudi Arabia -- to the
revolutionary madness of the Islamic Republic. July 14, 2015 -- a cry
for the ages -- the Islamic revolution of Iran received a stamp of
legitimacy from the international community. "We achieved all our
goals," boasted Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. Barack Obama gave --
and Iran took.
The president, in contrast to Roosevelt, is
turning to Congress to sidestep conflicts. In contrast to Roosevelt, he
is convinced that the 14th of July is a great day for America, a great
day for peace, a great day for humanity.
He doesn't understand that July 14, 2015, is
essentially a monumental day for Iran and a shameful day for the world.
Obama on Tuesday heralded American diplomacy for delivering change. And
change things it did; yesterday's enemy is today's friend, without
having to change its skin. Obama wanted a legacy. He got one on Tuesday
in the form of a deal, one that will live in infamy.
European Union foreign policy chief Federica
Mogherini also praised the wonderful achievement, hailing the nuclear
deal as "a new chapter of hope" for the world. A new chapter? We're
sorry to disappoint the Italian politician, but in 1938, not far from
Vienna, in Munich, a similar chapter was written in naiveté,
capitulation, concession and cowardice, by the West. This is not a new
chapter, it's just another one. If only this was a real agreement, and
not just a piece of paper. "Iran reaffirms that under no circumstances
will Iran ever seek, develop or acquire any nuclear weapons," the EU
foreign policy chief said. Of course, because Iran's nuclear program has
always been strictly for civilian purposes. Long live naiveté, long
live blindness.
And what will they do with the money?
Tuesday, as stated, was the 14th of July. It
is a special date -- a holiday in France. The French mark the fall of
the Bastille (in 1789), which embodied the French Revolution and its
motto of "liberty, equality, and fraternity." The French, who took part
in the negotiating in Vienna, have sullied the date. The French were
among those who capitulated to a regime that thinks "liberty, equality
and fraternity" are words from a science fiction novel. Iran, a country
where homosexuals are hanged in the street from a crane, is joining the
family of nations. And what a family it is.
As a result of the deal, we can already begin
imagining how every Iranian product -- from politician to pistachio nut
-- will become a hot commodity. Without making any significant
concession, Iran has been upgraded -- from leper (rightfully earned) to
popular (garnered through deception).
Much will still be said in the coming days
about the details of the deal (even though the world, which is ready to
take a vacation, will sink into amnesia and apathy far quicker than we
think). No less terrible, however, is what the deal implies: Obama
admitted that Iran's joining the family of nations will inject $150
billion into its coffers. And what exactly will it do with this money?
Will it promote world peace; or continue exporting the revolution via
terrorism and destabilizing the region, as it has been doing in Lebanon,
Iraq, Syria and Yemen?
Should it come as a surprise that Syrian
President Bashar Assad has welcomed the deal? Or that Hezbollah, which
has suffered serious setbacks in recent years, sees a possible
renaissance in its future? The axis of evil knows what to do with the
millions it is about to receive. In an interview to Le Monde on Tuesday,
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius confessed it was entirely
possible that Iran will use the money for nefarious purposes. "This will
be one of the tests of the deal," he said. There are so many tests.
We still don't know how the inspection
mechanism outlined in the deal will be translated into reality. But does
anyone really believe that Iran -- which secretly built and hid nuclear
facilities, which it won't have to destroy -- will suddenly change its
skin? The deal is a dangerous gamble -- too dangerous for all of us. And
let's be serious: If Iran doesn't fulfill its obligations, or even just
partially (inspections), will sanctions really be re-imposed after the
world goes back to doing business with a nation of 70 million people?
There is still hope
The 65-day buffer period before sanctions can
be lifted is merely a way to sell the capitulation deal to the world.
The periods of time stipulated in the deal are also less than promising:
The embargo on conventional weapons will be lifted in five years;
missile technology, in eight years; and for 15 years the Iranians will
be prohibited from bringing any type of fissile material into the Fordo
facility. What is 15 years?
Furthermore, there is no condition tying the
time frame to the type of regime in power in Iran. And this is perhaps
the worst aspect of the deal: Much more quickly than we anticipate, the
ayatollahs in Iran will be able to operate like Canada, Japan or
Holland.
The deal, however, does assure us that over
the next decade Iran's "breakout capability" will remain one year. And
after that? The time frame will shrink. In the meantime, the deal
doesn't limit the continuation of Iran's research and development. It's
not shocking that people in Tehran are celebrating.
The author of this piece, who was there for
the various rounds of discussions between Iran and the West, saw the
writing on the wall from the onset. Does anyone really think for a
second that when the U.S. president wants something -- it doesn't
happen? The Israeli prime minister stood practically alone in the fight,
but it wasn't enough. Can anyone honestly criticize him for trying his
hardest to prevent this terrible deal? While Obama may have mentioned a
50/50 chance for the deal, when he said it he intended 100% to get it
done. The Israeli prime minister, with all due respect, wields less
influence than the American president.
The Iranians very quickly received the thing
they coveted most -- permission to enrich uranium and preserve their
facilities. In the beginning, the idea was for Iran to come away from
these talks under restrictions, not with achievements. Why and for what
were they rewarded with so many prizes? And what message does it send to
the moderate Arab Gulf states, which chose the U.S. as their ally?
And how does the deal coincide with Obama's
vision, which he unveiled in Prague in 2009, of a world without
military-grade nuclear programs? Will anyone be able to prevent Egypt,
Saudi Arabia and Turkey -- Iran's regional foes -- from developing their
own nuclear programs? Does anyone actually think they will sit idly by
as Obama alters the balance of power in the Middle East?
It was clear this saga would end with an
agreement. All we can do now is hope that Congress torpedoes the deal,
although Obama's presidential veto would oblige the Democrats in both
houses to abandon him. It's rather difficult to pin any hopes on that in
an election year.
There is one more hope, however --
incidentally in the form of the Iranian people -- who could depose a
regime that not only threatens us and world peace, but has inflicted
pain on its own people for decades since the revolution in 1979.
Courageously, the people almost completed the task in 2009 -- but where
was Obama then?
The Iran of Omar Khayyám and the poets Hafez
and Saadi is an Iran we love. The Iran of the ayatollahs is an Iran that
worries us. This deal strengthens the ayatollahs, all while Obama is
allegedly encouraging nations to fight for their liberty.
But the president on Tuesday decided to add Ali Khamenei
to that esteemed list with Khayyam, Saadi and Hafez. And for this,
history will not forgive him.
Boaz Bismuth
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/site/newsletter_article.php?id=26885&hp=1
Copyright - Original materials copyright (c) by the authors.
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