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Obama to Iran: 'new beginnings' message

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  • #16
    I'll put this interesting interview about US and Iran relations here as the relations start anew with this 'new beginning' message of Obama. Click into the link below to read more.

    US allies in 'rivalry' with Iran

    28 Apr [Aljazeera] Vali Nasr, an Iranian-American academic, is serving as senior adviser to Richard Holbrooke, the US special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

    A professor of International Politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, Nasr is best known for his work on Iran and Sunni-Shia tensions in the Middle East.

    In a videotaped appeal in March, Barack Obama, the US president offered a "new beginning" in US-Iranian relations, calling for renewed exchanges and greater partnership. Iranian officials said action was needed to repair the relationship, but welcomed his words.

    Here, Nasr talks to Al Jazeera about Obama's overtures to Tehran and increasing tension between some Arab states and Hezbollah ahead of crucial elections in Iran and Lebanon.

    Al Jazeera: Barack Obama, the US president, has reached out to Iran. Will Iran respond in kind?

    Nasr: President Obama's policy is a clear departure from that of the Bush administration in that it is serious about engagement with Iran.

    Iranian leaders have been used to dealing with the Bush administration that spoke of engagement but was not serious about.

    In addition, President Obama enjoys great popularity around the world and even in the Muslim world.

    This means that the context for US-Iran relations has radically changed, and that forces Iranian leaders to reassess their policies and goals. I think Iranian leaders are debating how to respond to the Obama administration.

    A clear direction will not likely emerge until the presidential elections in June decide the shape of the Iranian government. ....

    Officials of Washington's Arab allies have been warning that Iran's influence in the region is as dangerous to them as its nuclear programme; is this because of a perceived Sunni-Shia rivalry? ...

    Benyamin Netanyahu, the new Israeli prime minister, is more concerned about the Iran situation than about dealing with the Palestinians. Is Iran a threat? ....

    Will Tehran open up to the international community in the event that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, is not re-elected in June? ....

    The Lebanese parliamentary elections will be held in June. Seen as a battleground for regional influence, Saudi Arabia and Iran are arming their Lebanese allies with campaign money. Votes are being bought with cash or in-kind services. How important is Lebanon to Iran? ....

    What are the regional repercussions should Hezbollah win the elections? .....

    Several weeks after Egyptian security forces uncovered a Hezbollah cell allegedly planning to carry out attacks in the country, Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president, warned "regional forces" against interfering with his country. ....
    Last edited by Merlin; 28 Apr 09,, 16:15.

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