Secret diplomacy worked in Iran; An apology for the President

Secret diplomacy worked in Iran An apology for the President

By David Ignatious

Count the Iran nuclear deal as a rare win for President Obama’s secretive, cerebral style of governing. His careful, closeted approach has produced many setbacks over the past five years, but it was at the heart of last weekend’s breakthrough deal with Tehran. [A break through deal it was not, it was outright appeasement]

It was a classic magic trick: While the eye was distracted by the show of the P5+1 talks, the real work was done elsewhere – and presented to the foreign ministers of Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany in Geneva two weeks ago almost as a fait accompli. [while betraying our oldest allies in the region]

No wonder Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius were miffed. This deal was done (as any serious piece of diplomacy must be) out of sight. They were asked to endorse it after the fact, and it’s no surprise that they balked – Netanyahu unwisely locking himself into an inflexible rejectionist position and Fabius dickering publicly for more concessions. [Obama arrogantly usurping their sovereign right to preserve their own existence!]

Commentaries along the way celebrated Fabius’ show of independence, just as earlier reports had lauded Russian diplomacy on Syria. But this credit was largely illusory. Iran and Syria illustrate the immense leverage America still has when it uses its diplomatic tools wisely and stealthily. [Kerry's explanation clearly explains the U.S. was outfoxed and appeasement was the only pathway left]

The definition of a good agreement is that it’s one each side can sell to their publics, and that’s the case here. The agreement seems broadly positive for the U.S. and Israel, at the outer edge of what was possible in terms of freezing the Iranian nuclear program and providing daily inspections to check against any trickery. The world is safer from the Iranian nuclear threat today than it was a week ago. [What Ignatious leaves out is not even Obama's fellow Democrat's like the deal and all indications are that the deal will end up on the dust bin of history]

But it’s a good deal for Iran, too, and that’s going to upset those who wanted an Iranian capitulation. The agreement explicitly seeks a “comprehensive solution (that) would enable Iran to fully enjoy its right to nuclear energy for peaceful purposes under the relevant articles of the NPT (Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty),” including “a mutually defined (uranium) enrichment program.” The language is just fuzzy enough that the U.S. can claim it hasn’t endorsed a “right to enrich” – but the Israeli critique here is correct. The enrichment right has prospectively been conceded; it will never be rescinded, nor will it ever again form the basis for a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Iran. [Ignatious again ignores the fact that Iran will never stop enrichment for the purpose of a nuclear weapon they have declared as necessary to "wipe Israel off the face of the earth."]

Could the Iranians pocket the modest $7 billion they will receive in sanctions relief and then press ahead in six months toward bomb-making capability? That’s certainly possible. But they would make such a breakout with more chance of a U.S. military strike than before. [They will pocket it, claim the agreement has been broken and expedited their enrichment program.  Ignatious is truly a delusional  idiot]

See "Kerry on Iran Deal: Blame Bush"