The West’s miscalculations on Iran

On the brink of new nuclear talks between Iran and the 5+1 group (the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany), U.S. and Israeli officials have escalated their rhetoric about Iran’s intentions for its nuclear program.
U.S. President Barack Obama says his threat to attack Iran if it does not back down in the nuclear dispute is not a bluff, and the Israelis are talking about acting “unilaterally” if necessary.

Over the past few months, the West has increased the pressure on Iran by imposing tougher sanctions on the country, with the goal of convincing Iran to change its stance on the nuclear issue. The West has targeted the Iranian people through the so-called “crippling” sanctions in order to make Iranian citizens dissatisfied with their government and to discourage them from supporting their government. But the Westerners received a clear message from the Iranian people in the recent parliamentary election.

The high turnout of over 64 percent in the March 2 election proved that the Iranian people support their government. The Iranian people disappointed the United States and put a big question mark over the West’s calculations on Iran. However, despite this clear signal from the Iranian people, U.S. and Israeli officials repeated the same old accusations against Iran at the recent conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).

So, why are such remarks being made and what is the purpose of this anti-Iran rhetoric?

First of all, the United States is now in a very weak position because of the Islamic Awakening and the fact that it has lost some of its military bases in Iraq and will definitely be compelled to hand over other bases in Afghanistan and other countries in the future.

The United States is stepping up the pressure on Iran in order to reduce Iran’s sphere of influence and to divert attention from the fact that the U.S. is facing defeat on a number of political fronts. Israel is in the same situation. And that is why the two countries are using such rhetoric.

The West is using every means at its disposal, including sanctions, to undermine Iran, but despite the talk about “all options being on the table,” they are not in a position to launch a military attack against Iran.

The Westerners have run out of options, and they are only stepping up their anti-Iran rhetoric in a futile attempt to strengthen their hand for the upcoming nuclear talks.

They are also trying to show they mean business with their bellicose language, although most of the world views their remarks as empty threats.

It’s clear that the unilateral sanctions imposed on the Central Bank of Iran and other Iranian institutions and the call for a boycott of Iranian oil were the last cards that the West had left to play before the negotiations with Iran. In this situation, Iran has the upper hand in the nuclear talks and can put diplomatic pressure on the West. And if the upcoming nuclear negotiations fail, the big losers will be the Western camp not Iran.

The Westerners must understand that they will get nowhere with their double-track policy toward Iran. The “speak softly and carry a big stick” policy became obsolete a century ago.

Iran is a strong state in the Middle East that is challenging the efforts of the United States and its Western allies to dominate the region.

The Muslim people of the Middle East and North Africa region are currently making efforts to depose the West’s puppets, who have been ruling their countries, and want to establish governments based on the teachings of Islam.

The ideas of Iran’s Islamic Revolution have spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa region, and this has bolstered Iran’s soft power. The West is afraid of this development and is seeking to quash the Islamic uprising. However, ignoring the elements of Iran’s power will lead the West to a dead end.
(the original article published in TehranTimes:
http://www.tehrantimes.com/opinion/96387-the-wests-miscalculations-on-iran-