Arabs Blast "Obama's Deal" With Iran
"This is a dangerous
agreement...[It ]provides Iran with what it needs most to pursue its
wars and expansionism against the Arabs: funds." -- Salah al-Mukhtar, Ammon News"
"Iran has tried to intervene in Iraq, Lebanon and Syria and it is
seeing that it's not paying any price...There is also a feeling in
Tehran that the U.S. is avoiding a military confrontation with the
Iranians."-- Hassan al-Barari, Al-Sharq
The deal means that the international community has accepted Iran as a nuclear power." -- Hani ala-Jamal, al-Wafd
Many Arabs have expressed deep concern over
the nuclear deal that was reached last week between Iran and the world
powers, including the US.
Arab leaders and heads of state were polite enough not to voice
public criticism of the agreement when President Barack Obama phoned
them to inform them about it. But this has not stopped Arab politicians,
political analysts and columnists reflecting government thinking in the
Arab world from lashing out at what they describe as "Obama's bad and
dangerous deal with Iran."
The Arabs, especially those living in the Gulf, see the framework
agreement as a sign of US "weakness" and a green light to Iran for Iran
to pursue its "expansionist" scheme in the Arab world.
"Some Arab countries are opposed to the nuclear deal because it poses
a threat to their interests," said the Egyptian daily Al-Wafd in an
article entitled, "Politicians: (President Barack) Obama's deal with
Iran threatens Arab world."http://www.alwafd.org/838527
The newspaper quoted Hani al-Jamal, an Egyptian political and
regional researcher, as saying that the deal means that the
international community has accepted Iran as a nuclear power. He
predicted that the framework agreement would put Iran and some Arab
countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt on a course of collision.
Al-Jamal advised the Arab countries to form a "Sunni NATO" that would
guarantee Pakistan's status as a nuclear power Arab ally in face of the
"Iranian and Israeli threat."
Jihad Odeh, an Egyptian professor of political science, said that
Obama's "achievements are designed to dismantle the Arab world. Obama
wants to make historic achievements before the end of his term in office
by destroying Al-Qaeda, seeking rapprochement with Cuba and reaching a
nuclear agreement with Iran."
http://www.alwafd.org/838527
Although Saudi Arabia, which is currently waging war on
Iranian-backed Houthi militiamen in Yemen, "welcomed" the nuclear
agreement, it has privately expressed concern over the deal.
http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/saudi-arabia/public-saudi-welcome-for-iran-nuclear-deal-but-unease-remains-1.1485119
Similarly, several Gulf countries that initially welcomed the
agreement are beginning to voce concern over its repercussions on the
region. For the past several months, the Arabs have been warning against
Iran's ongoing effort to take control over their countries.
"The US surely does not want to see a more powerful Iranian hegemony
in the region, but at the same time, it does not appear to mind some
kind of Iranian influence in the region," said Nasser Ahmed Bin Gaith, a
United Arab Emirates researcher. "Iran has been seeking to reclaim its
previous role as the region's police."
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/04/saudi-arabia-israel-oppose-iran-nuclear-deal-150401061906177.html
Bin Gaith said that it was clear that a Western recognition of
Iranian regional influence would come at the expense of the Gulf
countries.
"The Gulf states should build strategic partnerships with the
regional powers of Pakistan and Turkey, who share the Gulf nations'
fears of Iranian ambitions in the region," he added.
Echoing widespread fear among Arabs of Iran's territorial ambitions
in the Middle East, political analyst Hassan al-Barari wrote in Qatar's
daily Al-Sharq against the policy of appeasement toward Tehran.
"Iran has tried to intervene in Iraq, Lebanon and Syria and it is
seeing that it's not paying any price; on the contrary, there are
attempts by the big powers to reach understandings with Iran," al-Barari
pointed out. There is also a feeling in Tehran that the US is avoiding a
military confrontation with the Iranians and their proxies. The Gulf
countries have learned from the lessons of the past in various areas.
The policy of appeasement has only led to wars. Any kind of appeasement
with Iran will only lead it to ask for more and probably meddle in the
internal affairs of the Arab countries and increase its arrogance."
http://www.al-sharq.com/news/details/324014#.VR7KLjuUevV
Even Jordanians have joined the chorus of Arabs expressing fear over
Iran's growing threat to the Arab world, especially in wake of the
nuclear deal with the US and the big powers.
Salah al-Mukhtar, a Jordanian columnist, wrote an article entitled,
"Oh Arabs wake up, your enemy is Iran," in which he accused the US of
facilitating Tehran's wars against the Arab countries.
http://www.ammonnews.net/article.aspx?articleno=225764
Describing Iran as "Eastern Israel," al-Mukhtar said that the most
dangerous aspect of the framework agreement is that allows Iran to
continue with its "destructive wars" against the Arabs. "This is a
dangerous agreement, particularly for Saudi Arabia and the opposition
forces in Iraq and Syria," the Jordanian columnist cautioned. This
agreement provides Iran with what it needs most to pursue its wars and
expansionism against the Arabs: funds. Lifting the sanctions is
America's way of backing the dangerous and direct wars against Arabs;
the lifting of the sanctions also provides the Iranians with the funds
needed to push with their Persian advancement. The US wants to drain
Saudi Arabia and the Arab Gulf countries in preparation for dividing
them."
Lebanon's English language The Daily Star newspaper also voiced
skepticism over the nuclear deal. "For all the talk of this deal
contributing to making the world safer, if Obama is truly concerned with
his legacy, especially in the Middle East, he must now work with Iran
to encourage it to become a regular member of the international
community once again, and not a country which sponsors conflict, whether
directly or via proxies, across the region," the paper editorialized.
"Otherwise, this deal could just leave Iran emboldened in its
expansionist designs."
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Editorial/2015/Apr-03/293201-a-deal-or-legacy.ashx
In addition to the Arabs, Iranian opposition figures have also come out against the nuclear deal.
Maryam Rajavi, an Iranian politician and President of the National
Council of Resistance, commented that the a "statement of generalities,
without spiritual leader Khamenie's signature and official approval,
does not block Tehran's path to a nuclear bomb nor prevent its intrinsic
deception.
"Continuing talks with religious fascism in Iran - as part of a
policy of appeasement - will not secure the region and world from the
threat of nuclear proliferation," Rajavi warned. "Complying with UN
Security Council resolutions is the only way to block the mullahs from
obtaining nuclear weapons. Leniency and unwarranted concessions by the
P5+1 to the least trustworthy regime in the world today only grants it
more time and further aggravates the dangers it poses to the Iranian
people, to the region and to the wider world."
http://irannewsupdate.com/news/nuclear/2047-iran-maryam-rajavi-fearful-mullahs-reluctantly-take-one-more-step-backward-toward-drinking-the-chalice-of-nuclear-poison.html
|
<< Home