Olive Branches and Rebukes – Ayatollah Khamenei to President Obama: Change Your Behavior

Ayatollah Khamenei to US: Change your Behavior
Ali Rizk – Moqawama Specials

The alarm expressed by “Israel” over UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon’s participation in the NAM summit in Tehran is not merely related to Ban’s engagement with high ranking Iranian officials. Rather “Israeli” premier Benjamin Netanyahu was so angry with Ban’s participation, describing it as “a big mistake”, because he knows that it means Western, and specifically US engagement with Tehran. According to certain Iranian media websites, Ban decided to head to Iran upon the insistence of former US assistant secretary of state Jeffrey Feltman, who was recently appointed as Ban’s undersecretary for political affairs, and who accompanied the UN chief on this trip. Ban’s meeting with the Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei actually does fit in with the Obama style approach towards the Islamic Republic.

Since coming into office, Obama has sought to communicate directly with Ayatollah Khamenei having sent letters addressed directly to the leader of the Islamic Revolution in Iran. The “traces of the American administration” were also evident in Ban’s statements. At a time where US officials worry about a possible “Israeli” suicide mission to strike Iran, which would prove catastrophic for US interests and for “Israel” itself, Ban called on the Islamic Republic to show cooperation regarding its peaceful nuclear program. MORE IMPORTANTLY the UN chief urged the Islamic Republic to tone down its anti-“Israeli” rhetoric saying:
“I strongly reject threats by any member state to destroy another or outrageous attempts to deny historical facts such as the Holocaust.”

At a time where there are elevated fears in Washington about Netanyahu going ahead with a possible military adventure, one of the ways in which the Obama administration could use leverage against Netanyahu would be to have Iran’s leadership reiterate that its nuclear program is indeed for peaceful purposes and at the same time tone down its anti-“Israeli” approach.

On the other hand Ban made reference to Iran’s significant weight as a regional player which could play a role in putting an end to the crisis in Syria. Here the US can be seen as showing its recognition of Iran as an indispensable regional player. But taking into account what was mentioned above regarding “Israel”, Washington appears to be saying that it has no problem with Iran playing a major regional role if Tehran makes some adjustments to its stances towards “Israel”. Put in another way : “change your behavior, only with regards to “Israel””.

Then came the response of the Iranian supreme leader. In a speech opening the NAM summit Ayatollah Khamenei once again underscored that his country was against weapons of mass destruction describing their use as “an unforgivable sin”. But with respect to “Israel” he made it clear that it was “Israel” that was the source of instability and the hostile party with its policies against the Palestinians and its ongoing threats to launch war on Iran, referring to “Israeli” leaders as “bloodthirsty wolves”. But what was most significant was what he said towards the end of his speech. In response to the calls to change behavior towards “Israel”, Ayatollah Khamenei told Washington to do just the same: change American behavior and policies towards “Israel”.

The Iranian supreme leader said that “Israel” was causing the US a headache and that the ongoing support for “Israel” was becoming too costly for the United States. He also said that American officials should “show courage and opt for the referendum solution” regarding Palestine and stop what he called the US “astronomical spending” on “Israel”.

These statements by Ayatollah Khamenei do indeed show signs of a new world order which the supreme leader also referred to in its speech. In fact this new world order and Iran’s role in it became evident ever since Obama, who belongs to the realist school of thought, came to the White House advocating a new approach towards Iran realizing that the US is no longer in a position to continue hostile policies towards certain countries.

The US president however, has bowed down to “Israeli” pressures so far and has set records in military assistance to the Israeli government. This “bowing down to “Israel”” will only cost the US more as the Islamic awakening in the region signals the beginning of a period where the people are the source of legitimacy. And the stance of the people towards “Israel” is no secret to anyone. …source