It's all too easy to paint nations with a broad brush. Doing so can lead to bad foreign policy.
Take Iran, for example. Recall former President Bush condemning Iran as a member of the "axis of evil." That epithet needlessly angered Iranians, including the very Iranians who are reform-minded and are pressing for change and more constructive interaction with the West.
It is only recently that some of our more bellicose politicians and pundits were seriously talking of military strikes against Iran. Yet with the recent internal division over their election, it should be evident that Iran is not a monolithic society moving inexorably toward radicalism. To the contrary, a substantial portion of the Iranian population is pressing for reform, liberalization, and better relations with the West. A military strike on Iran would have doomed any chance for progress and would have cut the ground out from under the reform movement.
Now that it is evident that a substantial portion of Iranians wants change, President Obama's critics are urging him to speak more forcefully to condemn the current regime and support the reform movement. In fact, the president already has made clear his support for the process of reform. He is correct to resist cranking up the rhetoric any further at this time. It would be counter-productive, subjecting the reformists to the charge of being no more than "stooges for America."
Of course this is a dilemma for the president. He must make clear his support for reform, which he has done. He promised to reach out to Iran and, in any case, must deal with the existing regime. It is a fine line to walk - supporting reform while dealing with the regime in power and not condoning its actions. For decades, we had diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union. But this did not mean we embraced the regime - we recognized and dealt with reality. The same principal should apply to Iran.
Nothing can be solved by harsher rhetoric and tough words that, once uttered, cannot be retracted. Our president is dealing with this delicate situation as well as is humanly possible. All this should remind us that nations are not "evil." While a repressive regime acts not to our liking, this does not make a nation, and by implication its people, "evil."
Four years living and working in the Middle East does not make me an expert. But neither are the hawkish politicians who have never set foot in the Middle East, except perhaps a night in a five-star hotel.
The Middle East in general, and the Arab World in particular, has changed, is changing, and will continue to change. But it will change at its own pace. And it must come from within. It cannot be forced by bombs, bullets and bayonets. A combination of young people, women pressing for more rights, communication enabled by the Internet, and the irrepressible human desire for greater economic opportunity are forces that will eventually prevail, if given a chance. We are seeing these forces at work in Iran.
Change will take time. Before we get too critical of what we consider to be a pace too slow, let's remember that we're not always so fast ourselves. American women have had the right to vote for less than 100 years, and African-Americans in some parts of the country for even less.
Just as ill-advised military action can be counterproductive, so too can ill-advised rhetoric. We are fortunate to have a president who has credibility throughout the world and who understands the nuances and delicate art of foreign policy.
President Obama knows what he's doing. Let's give him a chance.
- Monroe native John Waelti served four years as Head of the Department of Agricultural Economics, Sultan Qaboos University, Sultanate of Oman. He can be reached at jjwaelti@charter.net.
Take Iran, for example. Recall former President Bush condemning Iran as a member of the "axis of evil." That epithet needlessly angered Iranians, including the very Iranians who are reform-minded and are pressing for change and more constructive interaction with the West.
It is only recently that some of our more bellicose politicians and pundits were seriously talking of military strikes against Iran. Yet with the recent internal division over their election, it should be evident that Iran is not a monolithic society moving inexorably toward radicalism. To the contrary, a substantial portion of the Iranian population is pressing for reform, liberalization, and better relations with the West. A military strike on Iran would have doomed any chance for progress and would have cut the ground out from under the reform movement.
Now that it is evident that a substantial portion of Iranians wants change, President Obama's critics are urging him to speak more forcefully to condemn the current regime and support the reform movement. In fact, the president already has made clear his support for the process of reform. He is correct to resist cranking up the rhetoric any further at this time. It would be counter-productive, subjecting the reformists to the charge of being no more than "stooges for America."
Of course this is a dilemma for the president. He must make clear his support for reform, which he has done. He promised to reach out to Iran and, in any case, must deal with the existing regime. It is a fine line to walk - supporting reform while dealing with the regime in power and not condoning its actions. For decades, we had diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union. But this did not mean we embraced the regime - we recognized and dealt with reality. The same principal should apply to Iran.
Nothing can be solved by harsher rhetoric and tough words that, once uttered, cannot be retracted. Our president is dealing with this delicate situation as well as is humanly possible. All this should remind us that nations are not "evil." While a repressive regime acts not to our liking, this does not make a nation, and by implication its people, "evil."
Four years living and working in the Middle East does not make me an expert. But neither are the hawkish politicians who have never set foot in the Middle East, except perhaps a night in a five-star hotel.
The Middle East in general, and the Arab World in particular, has changed, is changing, and will continue to change. But it will change at its own pace. And it must come from within. It cannot be forced by bombs, bullets and bayonets. A combination of young people, women pressing for more rights, communication enabled by the Internet, and the irrepressible human desire for greater economic opportunity are forces that will eventually prevail, if given a chance. We are seeing these forces at work in Iran.
Change will take time. Before we get too critical of what we consider to be a pace too slow, let's remember that we're not always so fast ourselves. American women have had the right to vote for less than 100 years, and African-Americans in some parts of the country for even less.
Just as ill-advised military action can be counterproductive, so too can ill-advised rhetoric. We are fortunate to have a president who has credibility throughout the world and who understands the nuances and delicate art of foreign policy.
President Obama knows what he's doing. Let's give him a chance.
- Monroe native John Waelti served four years as Head of the Department of Agricultural Economics, Sultan Qaboos University, Sultanate of Oman. He can be reached at jjwaelti@charter.net.
