Word: iranian
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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Even before Reagan's statement, Tehran seemed eager to speed up the negotiations. On Tuesday an Iranian message clattered into the teletypes of the State Department's operations center. Christopher hastily called in the six-man hostage negotiating group he heads to discuss the latest communication: a series of about 15 questions concerning "the procedures and mechanics" of the U.S. proposal. After more than four hours of deliberation, the U.S. team dispatched its reply to Algiers for relay to Tehran...
negotiators. On arrival at Dar el Beida Airport, Christopher was driven to a two-hour meeting with Algerian Foreign Minister Mohammed Ben Yahia. Meanwhile, a second set of Iranian questions arrived in Washington, prompting Christopher to extend his stay in Algiers...
Despite the snag that had arisen, Washington officials remained encouraged by the tone of the Iranian questions, which suggested that Tehran might at least be seriously considering the U.S. terms. Explained an official familiar with the minuet of the negotiations: "They were asking us, 'If what you propose were to take place, how would it be done and what would happen next?' They engaged our proposals...
...Tehran, meanwhile, Iranian leaders seemed almost to be parading a series of highly ambiguous public statements about a mysterious Algerian plan. First, Prime Minister Mohammed Ali Raja'i announced that Revolutionary Leader Ayatullah Ruhollah Khomeini had approved Algerian efforts to resolve the hostage issue. Said Raja'i: "We explained the Algerian proposal, which has suggested that it will guarantee to solve our problem with the United States, and the Imam permitted us to accept these guarantees." But Raja'i made no attempt to explain what those guarantees were...
Whatever it was, an intermediary Algerian role seemed important to the Iranian leaders, chiefly as a face-saving device for backing down from their extortionary demands. Said a senior Iranian diplomat in Tehran: "The mullahs' political capital is based on their anti-Americanism. Their problem is that they want both a hostage deal and a sure way to avoid loss of face. Thus the latest strategy for compromise with America is to maneuver Algeria into holding...