Behind the Attacks lies a greater ambition to build an American Empire

History has been made today with a landmark meeting in Bagdad, the meeting between US envoy and Iranian Ambassador. This is the first high level contact between the countries in 30 years. Whatever the outcome may have been the meeting itself is a step towards the right direction which must be commended. Hopefully more meetings of this kind in the future will eventually bring about normal relationship between the two countries both with distinct history.

The meeting reported on BBC’s website as ‘US warns Iran over arming Iraqis’. Following the positive gloss on the meeting above it is unfortunate that a major news corporation fails to report an important event more positively. On a broader point however, reading the US feedback on the meeting, they very characteristically attacks the Iranian and warns them to ‘stop arming Iraqis’.

The US attack on the independent sovereign Iraq has been a blunder, the greatest mistake of George Bush’s career. The war on Iraq has come to haunt the neo-cons in spectacular fashion marred in controversy and perhaps incompetence though many would say rather arrogance failed their intelligence. What is clear however now is that amid increasing dissatisfaction and eroding support for the president and his project at home and isolated and ridiculed image of the US administration abroad left the master at the White House and Pentagon wonder for solutions. Their failure of astronomical magnitude costing lives and money at a frightening even to think. No body knows of the total death tolls of Iraq civilians and every day dozens more are dying. The country and its infrastructure are in tatters leaving a one time rich and advance nation in ruins. The failure to manage Iraq and bring about normalisation is increasingly frustrating the US administration who now finds an easy escape goat on Iran, an isolated nation being victim of US imperial vision.

But should we be surprised at the US’s hypocritical role with regards to Iran? Let’s briefly list some of the issues that US has with Iran: Nuclear, Arming Insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan and supporting Hezbollah and the likes. Of course the neo-cons and their allies also allege the Iranian regime to be theocratic who are suffocating the people of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran was labelled as member of the ‘Axis of Evil’ pronounced by the president in a famous speech. I shall seek to address each of these in brief below.

The issue of Nuclear energy and suspected military motives by the Iranian regime is one of total and utter nonsense, indefensible by any logic. To start with, the forces demanding the Iranian regime to give up their nuclear ambition themselves are armed with most sophisticated nuclear technology perhaps would not be possible for Iran to ever match and they continue to increase and enhance their capability both at the civil and military arena. To prevent Iran and to bully them to stop nuclear activities is the greatest hypocrisy of our time. There are other unstable regimes with nuclear bombs who instead of being forced to give up their weapons are being helped actively and empowered to strengthen their capability, India just one such nation who have a history of fighting with its neighbours, continues to have interesting relationship with most of its neighbours. India is also a country entrenched into sectarian fighting and many of her provinces are unstable as a result of ‘independence movement’ by various groups. How than is it justifiable that a nation who have been engaged in unprovoked war on more than one occasion with more than one nation is allowed to be empowered with nuclear forces and aided by the US yet when Iran, relatively small nation who never fought an aggressive war and clearly states no desire to acquire military nuclear technology be forced to abandon her projects? Why should there be a ban on Iran’s effort when clearly they have neither broken any role nor threatened or shown any sign of aggression? The only answer is Iran refuses to be a US poodle in a region where most others are happy to do so thus represent a threat to US-Israeli dominance in the oil rich region of our world which also happens to be the heart of a major religion with a global vision.

Iran seen a change over three decades ago, a change that brought an end to the most ruthless and autocratic regime in her entire history. The Islamic revolution was a mass movement of the people who reclaimed their right to govern themselves free from the suppression of ruthless dictator. Ever since the revolution the regimes in Iran have been elected democratically by the popular vote of her citizens contrary to the picture painted in the west. Iran is the only Middle Eastern country to have a thorough democratic system where man and women all participate. Contrary to the claims made by the neo-cons, the government in Iran has better democratic credential than President Bush for it was Bush who ashamed great American democracy by loosing the popular vote yet gaining the presidency.

The rise of the current Iranian political elites to the power came as a result of a stated commitment to fight aggression and help others to free themselves from occupation and dictatorship. As such Iran committed itself to help occupied people of Palestine and Lebanon to mobile their numbers to force occupiers out of their land. Most nation in history have done so, there is nothing inherently wrong in doing so. Even to date, US continue to arm support and fund more rebel and other groups to destabilise more countries than Iran can ever dream of doing. US’s role in funding extremist armed groups is well known and continues to date including currently funding an Iranian dissident group which has been branded ‘terrorist’ organisation by various international entities. Most recently, they have also actively supported a quo against the democratically elected government of Venezuela. The support for Israel and its illegal occupation continues to be a shame on American nation.

The arguments can be built, fact however is that the arrogance of American administrations means little does these arguments means. In affect however, beneath all the words and arrogance lies an ambitious desire to build a new empire spanning the whole world in which only America and her allies will have the ultimate say. Countries like Iran are an obstacle in achieving such vision thus prevented from pursuing legitimate means to strengthen and advance their national interests.