Obama's 3½ minute video greeting to the Iranian people and its officials on their holiday, Friday, got a reaction on Saturday. The country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, dismissed the overture, listing a number of grievances against the United States including the downing of an Iranian plane 21 years ago, the freezing of Iranian assets and the support of Israel and Iranian opposition groups.
It seems apparent that Iran wants to continue enjoying its international status as the chief adversary of the "Great Satan," at least for now. This won't be as easy a task, internally, as it was when Iran was up against the Bush administration, however. It seems that Obama's communication skills and his personal connections to the Muslim world have made him extremely popular throughout the Middle East, including with the people of Iran.
And it also appears he might be a pretty good international chess player as well. Recent press reports suggest he may be seeking Russia's cooperation in handling Iran, using the possible elimination of the projected eastern European missile shield, which Russia despises, as a pawn. In so doing, however, it seems he must now come up with a move to appease the eastern European nations who have solidly come on board the plans for the shield.
In other Middle East news, CIA Director Leon Panetta arrived in Pakistan yesterday in the continuing U.S. effort to develop an effective strategy with respect to the war in neighboring Afghanistan. Specifically, it is reported that his principle objective will be to help Pakistan, which is currently embroiled in political turmoil, refocus its efforts on combating the Islamic insurgents that threaten the stability of the region.
Meanwhile, the Department of Defense, this week, released the obituary of one 25-year-old soldier killed in Iraq.
According to the website icasualties.org, U.S. deaths in Iraq now stand at 4,260, including two whose families are being notified today.
At the same time, the Department of Defense released the obituary of one 37-year-old Marine and four National Guardsmen, ages 22 to 25, who were killed in Afghanistan. Two bombings today also killed 11 people in the volatile Afghan region near the Pakistan border.
Total U.S. deaths in Afghanistan were 596 as of March 20, according to the Pentagon.
Five of the six fallen heroes were killed by roadside bombs.
On 60 Minutes this evening, President Obama said that Afghanistan represented a bigger problem than Iraq ever did. He said he was well aware of the nation's historical inability to govern itself effectively and as a graveyard for empires seeking to subjugate it. The ultimate plans for the campaign there would involve multiple efforts, he said, presumably meaning the inclusion of diplomacy, and would contain an exit strategy.
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Comments: 19
Pakistan/Afghanistan threaten to constitute an intractable problem in the near future. We are already experiencing a ramping up of casualties there (Afghanistan), and sending in more troops (but far from enough to impose an effective level of dominance on the ground) only promises to exacerbate that situation. Expect more suicide bombings and IED attacks. Turning Afghanistan into a viable nation-state is a tall order.
Pakistan, likewise, is growing progressively more unstable. (The last thing the world needs is a "loose nukes" problem in that part of the world.)
All things considered, Iraq is starting to look pretty tame by comparison. Incredibly.
Obama is willing to try but that was rejected. However, He will continue, which is a good thing anyway, even if Iran's leaders continue to reject this.
You are not fit to lead this nation into war. Iraq is over and done with Barrack-if you got your way Iraq would still be a hell- hole. Stay out, Barrack, war is way above your narcissism.
I'm just going to adopt a 'wait and see' attitude, without a whole lot of confidence. It's a very difficult situation, no matter who the President is - no matter what party they represent.
Of course, it's easy to cast aspersions on him because he didn't fix all the problems that have built up over the last 8 years in the first 8 minutes of his administration. But that's like calling your contractor a lousy carpenter because your house isn't completly built 5 minutes before the materials are ordered.
Thanks for the information! That portion of the wold remains both enigmatic and dangerous. I would expect that Obama received the exact reply he expected and will continue to push diplomatic efforts. While the official response may be negative, the feelings and attitudes of the people will hold some influence on the future of the region. At this point Obama has nothing to loose from sincere diplomatic effort but could have a lot to loose by failure to attempt such efforts!
Lets see how long his party backs his play in Afghanistan/Pakistan. While he's at it, ignoring Iraq isn't advisable either. Much of so called savings for his expanded budgets depends on the false premise that withdrawing from a combat zone is cheap, if it heats up much and Iraq calls for help, what will he do then?
He just flunked the Korean challenge, Kim Il Jong bet that the US would do nothing but talk if he launched. He won that bet too, do you think Iran, or anyone else in the world failed to notice that?