Richard Perle of the American Enterprise Institute and a former undersecretary of defense in the Reagan Administration, makes an impassioned plea for a more aggressive stance toward Iran, decrying the fuzzier approach of the State Department in concert with the EU-3, to offer carrots to Iran without much to make them quake in their boots.
Perle notes that the United States, since 1979, has not had an effective strategy toward Iran, including now - and this is to ours and the Iranians detriment as there are any number of young Iranians champing at the bit for freedom. Perle cites President Reagan's tougher stance toward the Soviet Union and the eventual collapse of that nation that already had substantial nuclear power.
But these are different times, and unfortunately for Mr. Perle, however correct he may in his assertions and beliefs, he has been associated with the infamous neocons who have fallen on hard times after the Iraq war - its rationale and prosecution - and fairly or unfairly, the prevailing thought seems to be, "We did it your way and look what happened." Perle speaks of the paper tiger that the US appears to be to Iran - but that is in part because of Iraq - something that Reagan never had to contend with during his admininstration. In addition, the Iranians will not be impressed by people sitting at think tanks talking tough. It will most likely take people with someone or something to shake them up - and it won't come from think tanks any more than it will come from the State Department.
It is too bad - Iran deserves regime change after its turbulent history - and after the United States shenanigans during Mossadegh era that overthrew a democratically elected leader - that we may not get a second chance to get it right.
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