The Bush administration is making a smart move with its overture to Iran in offering to join European allies in direct negotiations to dissuade Iran from its nuclear military ambitions.
The U.S. has not had diplomatic relations with Iran since 1979 and had stayed aloof in recent years as the Europeans held inconclusive talks with the government in Tehran.
The United States, along with Britain, France and Germany, are seeking a complex bargain, offering Iran a rich package of incentives on the one hand and threatening punishing sanctions on the other – all to see Iran suspend its uranium enrichment initiative. Iran has said it was accelerating it program to develop nuclear power capabilities. Those same capabilities can be used for a military program that could shift the balance of power in the volatile Middle East, and Tehran has resisted international pressure to desist.
Iran wants direct talks with the United States on a broad array of issues, perhaps to include Iraq and security guarantees. The Bush administration shouldn’t agree to this while Iran continues its nuclear program, but multilateral talks could result in some confidence building on all sides.
One of the sanctions under consideration would impose an embargo on exporting refined petroleum products to Iran. This would be a big blow to a nation that paradoxically is flush with oil but has a shortage of refinery capacity and imports gasoline and diesel. Employing such a sanction is far preferable to a military strike by the United States, which Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made clear is still an option if Iran continues to defy international pressures.
The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, said he is optimistic that Tehran will accept the proposed package, which he called “bold enough, generous enough” to make it difficult for Iran “not to accept to start negotiations.” The Iranians were circling it cautiously – with the government news agency calling the offer a “propaganda move” and a foreign ministry spokesman saying that halting enrichment as a condition to any discussions is not on Iran’s agenda. The Associated Press quoted Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki as saying Iran was ready to resume talks with European negotiators “without preconditions.”
For the time being, the United States reportedly has agreed to rule out the immediate threat of military force in an effort to enlist Russia to support a resolution against Iran. The resolution will be taken up today at a critical United Nations Security Council meeting in Austria. Germany will join the U.S., Britain, France, Russia and China, the five permanent members of the council, to discuss the incentives and sanctions.
Moving more deeply into multilateral diplomacy is a welcome shift by the Bush administration. By standing together, the U.S., Europe, Russia and China have the best chance to deflect Iran from its path toward nuclear capabilities.
