Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Talking to Iran and Syria...   [Andrew Stuttaford]

...is, of course, absolutely the correct, cynically self-interested, thing to do. The idea that sitting down with the representatives of a country's regime either somehow "legitimizes" that regime or will be perceived (by anyone who matters) as some sort of reward is nonsense. Foreign policy is not a morality play, and the idea that it is has brought this country nothing but trouble (see Jimmy Carter then, some Neocons now). The US should certainly talk to Syria and Iran, and it should do so with open eyes, hard heart, and a willingness to lie, cheat and dissemble its way through the whole revolting process as and when necessary. We can be sure that the Syrians and Iranians will return the compliment.

Will anything good come of it? I've no idea, and nor does anyone else, but we won't know until it's been tried.

Speaking more widely, it strikes me as thoroughly perverse that those who like to argue that "nothing" should be off the table when it comes to Iran and Syria find a little diplomatic conversation as something too ghastly to contemplate.

02/28 12:26 PMShare