Friday, February 24, 2012 3:26:10 PM
Iranian diplomat analyzes complex relations with Syria
Sunday, 27 November 2011
Veteran Iranian diplomat Ali Jannati has slammed state TV for not conveying the full picture of
what is happening to Syrians at the hands of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. (File photo)
By Al Arabiya
Veteran Iranian diplomat Ali Jannati has written a report on the dynamics of the relationship between Iran and Syria and the Islamic republic’s role in getting the latter out of it crisis as well as about its concerns if there is a change in President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Ali Jannati, former Iranian ambassador to Kuwait and son of hard line cleric and chairman of the Guardian Council of the Constitution Ayatollah Ahmed Jannati, wrote in Mellat newspaper, that the best support Iran can offer to Syria in order to end the turmoil is to help in establishing a dialogue between the regime and opposition and in changing the features of the police state the regime has created of Syria.
Jannati admitted that Iran is apprehensive about the government that is to rule Syria in case the regime is ousted and particularly focused on anti-Iranian Sunni Islamists, namely the Muslim Brotherhood. However, he downplayed the influence of those Islamists in the Syrian political scene.
“The Muslim Brotherhood is not the dominant party in the Syrian opposition, which is made up of a variety of political factions.”
He pointed out that even Salafis, who are also labeled Islamists and are part of the opposition, are not on good terms with the Brotherhood.
“Plus, there are also liberal, communist, and socialist factions.”
Fear of a Brotherhood rule, however, is still valid, he added, because they are not expected to follow the footsteps of the Syrian regime as far as resistance movements in Lebanon and Palestine are concerned.
“For example, the Muslim Brotherhood will not want to have anything to do with Hezbollah in Lebanon because of sectarian difference. We are also not sure if they will reject normalization with Israel and support the Palestinian cause like Bashar al-Assad’s regime.”
In case free and fair elections are held in Syria and include all opposition parties participating, Jannati stated that Sunnis, whether Arabs or Kurds, comprise the majority of Syrians, while 13 percent of the population are Shiite Alawis and 10 percent Christians in addition to 3 percent Druze.
“Bearing all this in mind, it is expected that most Sunni Syrians will vote for the Muslim Brotherhood, which is the most popular among religious factions, and they will win a majority.”
As for former vice president Abdul Halim Khaddam, Jannati added, he has strong influence in Syria and his denunciation of Assad makes him quite popular among Syrian revolutionaries.
“Yet, the majority of average Syrians will consider him a remnant of Assad’s regime and will object to having him back in their new democracy.”
Jannati slammed Iranian state TV, which is supervised by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, for not conveying the full picture of what is happening to Syrians at the hands of Assad’s regime.
“Iranian TV could have chosen a more objective way of covering the events in Syria and should have shown both sides — the massacres committed by the regime and the weapons used by the opposition.”
(Translated from Arabic by Sonia Farid)
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/11/27/179481.html
=================
Turkey-Syria-Iran triangle is being redrawn
HDN | 6/22/2011 12:00:00 AM | Nihat Ali Özcan
The invasion of Iraq made the Sunni-Shiite polarization in the Middle East more apparent than ever.
The invasion of Iraq made the Sunni-Shiite polarization in the Middle East more apparent than ever. This was more obvious during the struggle over Iraq. Turkey tried hard to locate itself beyond the orbit of this polarization and sought ways to develop good relations with both sides: that is, Pakistan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia on the one hand and the new Iraq, Iran, Syria and Hezbollah, on the other hand. Turkey utilized various opportunities during those times.
The Arab Spring caused the struggle over Iraq to fade into the background. We are witnessing an indeterminate process challenging power holders and straining the inter-bloc balances. For instance, on the Sunni side of the equation, there is Egypt, struggling with internal problems. On the Shiite side, Syria is experiencing a shift of power and carrying the potential of inter-bloc displacement. It seems that the uprisings will not yield outcomes favoring the Shiite side.
Turkey-Syria relations were different in the near past. The uprisings changed the character of these relations. The discourse employed by President Abdullah Gül and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a good indicator of this change. In addition, Turkey’s close rapport with the U.S. regarding the Syrian politics clearly shows that Turkey has completely parted company with Bashar al-Assad. Erdogan doesn’t want another diplomatic crisis in the context of Syria, like the one instigated by the nuclear issue with Iran. We can say that he is ideologically much closer to the Muslim Brotherhood than Assad.
Turkey’s new approach to Syria also has the potential to create tension with Iran in the medium term. A possible shift of power will end the role of Syria as the “strategic ally” of Iran; which will in turn assign a partial responsibility for such an outcome to Turkey.
Iran-Syria relations teach a significant lesson for understanding the balances in the region. During the Iraq-Iran war, Khomeini’s Iran established a strategic alliance with Syria. Rapprochement with Iran was a sign that Syria was prepared to sacrifice Saddam’s Iraq. Iran rewarded this by providing Syria 1 billion dollars worth of free oil and commercial privileges. In return, Syria let Iran’s Revolutionary Guards move to Lebanon in order to train Hezbollah. In this way, Iran, exhilarated by the Islamic revolution, was now able to reach the Israeli border. No longer suffering from diplomatic isolation, Iran responded to NATO-member Turkey’s rapprochement with Iraq by first inviting the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, to its own land and then allowing them to move to northern Iraq. The Syria-Iran relations of the past continue up to this day, despite minor crises.
The rise to power of a “democratic” Muslim Brotherhood with the mediatized and psychological support of the West would mean that Syria will no longer belong to the Shiite bloc. Losing an ally like Syria would force Iran to lose a highly important geopolitical space and also instigate serious psychological trauma. Under such circumstances, Turkey will most likely leave aside the politics of balancing and begin to embrace its role as a new member of the Sunni bloc. It would be no surprise at all if Turkey-Iran relations acquired a new shape in the near future.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/default.aspx?pageid=438&n=turkey-syria-iran-triangle-is-being-redrawn-2011-06-22
In this picture from yours
They say Romney has trouble being an ordinary guy .. don't know if it's just me, but in this picture from yours .. to me he looks that guy .. a guy who inside really does feel that he has his pre-earthly training .. the outside all others of the human race Mormon thing .. he looks like he really thinks he is that special chance to be what Joseph Smith Jr never quite was .. maybe it's the 'the special' one inside him which makes him as uncomfortable being normal .. does that make any sense at all? .. the cardboard man really does look as one who has trouble being 'himself .. 'normal .. yup i've read .. who knows?
Sunday, 27 November 2011
Veteran Iranian diplomat Ali Jannati has slammed state TV for not conveying the full picture of
what is happening to Syrians at the hands of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. (File photo)
By Al Arabiya
Veteran Iranian diplomat Ali Jannati has written a report on the dynamics of the relationship between Iran and Syria and the Islamic republic’s role in getting the latter out of it crisis as well as about its concerns if there is a change in President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Ali Jannati, former Iranian ambassador to Kuwait and son of hard line cleric and chairman of the Guardian Council of the Constitution Ayatollah Ahmed Jannati, wrote in Mellat newspaper, that the best support Iran can offer to Syria in order to end the turmoil is to help in establishing a dialogue between the regime and opposition and in changing the features of the police state the regime has created of Syria.
Jannati admitted that Iran is apprehensive about the government that is to rule Syria in case the regime is ousted and particularly focused on anti-Iranian Sunni Islamists, namely the Muslim Brotherhood. However, he downplayed the influence of those Islamists in the Syrian political scene.
“The Muslim Brotherhood is not the dominant party in the Syrian opposition, which is made up of a variety of political factions.”
He pointed out that even Salafis, who are also labeled Islamists and are part of the opposition, are not on good terms with the Brotherhood.
“Plus, there are also liberal, communist, and socialist factions.”
Fear of a Brotherhood rule, however, is still valid, he added, because they are not expected to follow the footsteps of the Syrian regime as far as resistance movements in Lebanon and Palestine are concerned.
“For example, the Muslim Brotherhood will not want to have anything to do with Hezbollah in Lebanon because of sectarian difference. We are also not sure if they will reject normalization with Israel and support the Palestinian cause like Bashar al-Assad’s regime.”
In case free and fair elections are held in Syria and include all opposition parties participating, Jannati stated that Sunnis, whether Arabs or Kurds, comprise the majority of Syrians, while 13 percent of the population are Shiite Alawis and 10 percent Christians in addition to 3 percent Druze.
“Bearing all this in mind, it is expected that most Sunni Syrians will vote for the Muslim Brotherhood, which is the most popular among religious factions, and they will win a majority.”
As for former vice president Abdul Halim Khaddam, Jannati added, he has strong influence in Syria and his denunciation of Assad makes him quite popular among Syrian revolutionaries.
“Yet, the majority of average Syrians will consider him a remnant of Assad’s regime and will object to having him back in their new democracy.”
Jannati slammed Iranian state TV, which is supervised by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, for not conveying the full picture of what is happening to Syrians at the hands of Assad’s regime.
“Iranian TV could have chosen a more objective way of covering the events in Syria and should have shown both sides — the massacres committed by the regime and the weapons used by the opposition.”
(Translated from Arabic by Sonia Farid)
http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/11/27/179481.html
=================
Turkey-Syria-Iran triangle is being redrawn
HDN | 6/22/2011 12:00:00 AM | Nihat Ali Özcan
The invasion of Iraq made the Sunni-Shiite polarization in the Middle East more apparent than ever.
The invasion of Iraq made the Sunni-Shiite polarization in the Middle East more apparent than ever. This was more obvious during the struggle over Iraq. Turkey tried hard to locate itself beyond the orbit of this polarization and sought ways to develop good relations with both sides: that is, Pakistan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia on the one hand and the new Iraq, Iran, Syria and Hezbollah, on the other hand. Turkey utilized various opportunities during those times.
The Arab Spring caused the struggle over Iraq to fade into the background. We are witnessing an indeterminate process challenging power holders and straining the inter-bloc balances. For instance, on the Sunni side of the equation, there is Egypt, struggling with internal problems. On the Shiite side, Syria is experiencing a shift of power and carrying the potential of inter-bloc displacement. It seems that the uprisings will not yield outcomes favoring the Shiite side.
Turkey-Syria relations were different in the near past. The uprisings changed the character of these relations. The discourse employed by President Abdullah Gül and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a good indicator of this change. In addition, Turkey’s close rapport with the U.S. regarding the Syrian politics clearly shows that Turkey has completely parted company with Bashar al-Assad. Erdogan doesn’t want another diplomatic crisis in the context of Syria, like the one instigated by the nuclear issue with Iran. We can say that he is ideologically much closer to the Muslim Brotherhood than Assad.
Turkey’s new approach to Syria also has the potential to create tension with Iran in the medium term. A possible shift of power will end the role of Syria as the “strategic ally” of Iran; which will in turn assign a partial responsibility for such an outcome to Turkey.
Iran-Syria relations teach a significant lesson for understanding the balances in the region. During the Iraq-Iran war, Khomeini’s Iran established a strategic alliance with Syria. Rapprochement with Iran was a sign that Syria was prepared to sacrifice Saddam’s Iraq. Iran rewarded this by providing Syria 1 billion dollars worth of free oil and commercial privileges. In return, Syria let Iran’s Revolutionary Guards move to Lebanon in order to train Hezbollah. In this way, Iran, exhilarated by the Islamic revolution, was now able to reach the Israeli border. No longer suffering from diplomatic isolation, Iran responded to NATO-member Turkey’s rapprochement with Iraq by first inviting the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, to its own land and then allowing them to move to northern Iraq. The Syria-Iran relations of the past continue up to this day, despite minor crises.
The rise to power of a “democratic” Muslim Brotherhood with the mediatized and psychological support of the West would mean that Syria will no longer belong to the Shiite bloc. Losing an ally like Syria would force Iran to lose a highly important geopolitical space and also instigate serious psychological trauma. Under such circumstances, Turkey will most likely leave aside the politics of balancing and begin to embrace its role as a new member of the Sunni bloc. It would be no surprise at all if Turkey-Iran relations acquired a new shape in the near future.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/default.aspx?pageid=438&n=turkey-syria-iran-triangle-is-being-redrawn-2011-06-22
In this picture from yours
They say Romney has trouble being an ordinary guy .. don't know if it's just me, but in this picture from yours .. to me he looks that guy .. a guy who inside really does feel that he has his pre-earthly training .. the outside all others of the human race Mormon thing .. he looks like he really thinks he is that special chance to be what Joseph Smith Jr never quite was .. maybe it's the 'the special' one inside him which makes him as uncomfortable being normal .. does that make any sense at all? .. the cardboard man really does look as one who has trouble being 'himself .. 'normal .. yup i've read .. who knows?
It was Plato who said, “He, O men, is the wisest, who like Socrates, knows that his wisdom is in truth worth nothing”
Join the InvestorsHub Community
Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
