Iran Archive

Done…

The United States has ruled out an attack on Iran’s nuclear program in the short term, a top Defense Department official said on Wednesday. Instead, the US will focus on negotiations with Teheran and continue its aggressive pursuit of United Nations sanctions against the Islamic regime. “Military force is an option of last resort,” Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Michele Flournoy told reporters during a briefing in Singapore. “It’s off the table in the near term.” Flournoy said the US has not seen Iran engage productively. But, “right now the focus is a combination of engagement and pressure in the form of sanctions.” Israeli officials, who have called for tough sanctions on Iran, did not immediately recalibrate their policy, and emphasized their strategic partnership with the US.

… and done:

America’s top military officer wouldn’t rule the possibility today of U.S. forces firing on Israeli jets, if Israel launched a pre-emptive strike on Iran… a young Air Force ROTC cadet asked Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen to respond to a “rumor.” If Israel decided to attack Iran, the speculation went, those jet would need to fly through Iraqi airspace to reach their targets… might U.S. troops shoot down the Israeli jets… Mullen tried to sidestep the question…”I am hopeful that this will be resolved in a way where we never have to answer a question like that.” The cadet followed-up: “Would an airmen like me ever be ordered to fire on an Israeli – aircraft or personnel?” Mullen’s second answer was much the same as his first… it was interesting to hear America’s top military officer decline to knock down the idea that U.S. troops might fire on America’s closest ally in the Middle East.

Hot Air thinks that the Mullen story is silly, since of course he wouldn’t take a stand one way or another. I dunno about that. If the Pentagon is committed to studious noncommittal on Iran, mealy-mouthed bromides about strong carrots and weak sticks are an awfully nuanced way of going about that. The timing of the statement also leaves something to be desired, coming as it does a few days after Ahmadinejad bragged during Army Day that the Islamic regime is “so strong no one will even think about attacking it.” Which was a few days after he threatened to light up the Middle East if Obama pressures Iran. Which was a few days after the Iranian foreign ministry urged the West to punish Israel over settlements.

Now the hardliners get to garner prestige from the perception that they intimidated the United States, forced the Americans to back down, and moved the White House in an anti-Israel direction. These are the same hardliners who have taken to using their domestic political power to signal quite definitively that engagement is a non-starter.

As for sanctions, Iran has drawn Turkey and Brazil and Japan to circumvent even a halfhearted sanctions regime, part of their global strategy to create an anti-American block on nuclear issues. Turkey’s been a lock for a while and continues to be a vocal opponent of sanctions. For Japan the Iranians – classy rascals that they are – trotted out pictures of charred children in the aftermath Hiroshima. The Japanese have now declared themselves to be firlmy for more diplomacy. And Brazil has been particularly gracious, with Lula not only opposing sanctions but explicitly echoing Ahmadinejad’s call to construct a “new global order.”

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