Why has the US established diplomatic ties with Iran?

by Dave Keating | July 17, 2008 at 05:05 am | 120 views | 1 comment

It may seem ratehr sudden and out of character for President Bush to decide, at this time, to establish diplomatic relations with Iran for the first time since the Islamic republic was established. But the timing has much to do with key signals being sent internally within the Iranian government that there are some in power who are open to negotiation.

The idea reportedly came from Condoleeza Rice, who said that now was the time to engage those people in the government who are more receptive to Western demands. The reasoning isn't just because there have been signals of willingness within the Iranian government, but also because the US is worried its message is being diluted by having to go through its European partners, who do have diplomatic ties with the country, to speak with Iran.

But whether this is a propaganda victory for Iran or not remains under debate, even within the country itself.

President Bush's decision to shift policy and send a senior U.S. envoy to nuclear talks with Iran this weekend was made after increasing signs that Iran was open to possible negotiations and that international sanctions were having an impact on the Islamic republic, U.S. officials said yesterday.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pushed for the move in a meeting on Monday of Bush's top aides, and Bush's support suggests he increasingly is determined to put aside a possible military strike in an effort to reach a deal to end Iran's nuclear program in his final six months in office. In recent weeks, the White House already has approved a sweetened package of incentives to Iran that included a pledge to refrain from the use of force, supported a European gambit to begin preliminary talks with Iran and sent clear signals to Israel not to consider acting against Iran on its own.

For more than two years, the Bush administration has had the same bottom line: Iran must suspend its enrichment of uranium -- a route to a nuclear weapon -- before serious talks can begin. U.S. officials insisted yesterday that such a demand, also shared by European allies, had not changed, but the diplomatic lines have become sufficiently hazy that if negotiations start in earnest, Iran will also be able to claim a diplomatic victory.