Word: tehran
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...government, Ross watched these developments with increasing alarm. He became convinced that Obama could change the context of the relationship with Iran. An Obama presidency, he thought, could transform the Iranian image of America and "make it easier to explain your policies and get more of a hearing" from Tehran, Ross told me last July. "Iran's almost reflexive suspicion of the U.S. would be removed. That's not insignificant." (See pictures of Bush in the Middle East...
...Deputy Foreign Minister Mohammed Mehdi Akhundzadeh at an international conference in the Hague. At a Friends of Pakistan meeting in Tokyo, one of Holbrooke's diplomats met with his Iranian counterpart. And in a secret back-channel outreach in April, State Department staffers working for Ross got clearance from Tehran for a possible trip there this summer by a U.S. diplomat, according to a senior Administration official and a senior European diplomat...
This tough line on the part of the U.S. should not be seen as a surprise. Ross's policy is straightforward; if bigger carrots don't work, try bigger sticks. If Tehran doesn't enter serious negotiations by September, the U.S. intends to unveil a raft of penalties. In return for U.S. participation in the nuclear talks, Ross got the Europeans to help plan sanctions that would target Iranian businesses that have nothing to do with the nuclear program. The U.S. wants bans on insuring Iranian energy firms and any companies that do business with them. It also wants...
...that they fear that the U.S. is extending a hand to Iran only in an attempt to build a united coalition against them when talks fail. Indeed, on his May trip to the Persian Gulf, Ross carried a message for Iran's Arab neighbors, all of whom worry that Tehran will get nukes if Obama makes too nice. "Right now we're trying to make this work," a senior Administration official said, paraphrasing Ross's talking points. But, he continued, "by drawing everyone in, we're also setting a stage that creates a justification if this doesn't work...
...Europe and Russia all insist Obama's offer of talks is genuine and remains on the table. Perhaps the presidential election in Iran will bring a significant change; perhaps Tehran will negotiate its nuclear program back into compliance with international treaties. But few of those involved in Iran policy expect such events to happen. Dennis Ross has spent the first months of the Obama Administration peeling carrots. Don't be surprised if you see him soon sharpening sticks...