11-07-2006

When Slogans Attain Supreme Priority

It is now one week that New York is witness to a United Nations conference on Small Arms Trafficking. This is the second such conference after the first on in 2001 which looks at the 5-year performance of countries in their efforts to curb the use and spread of these weapons in domestic, regional and conflicts.

These small arms, which range from pistols to anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, are viewed by some as weapons of mass destruction because they have been the cause of death and disablement of thousands of human beings around the world from Africa to the Middle East. It is their ease of use and accessibility that has drawn children into regional conflicts in different parts of the world, increased war crimes, and makes controlling armed criminals more difficult.

In Iran, these weapons have a special significance. The smuggling of these weapons into the country in large quantities from Iraq and their availability to armed drug traffickers along the borders with Pakistan and Afghanistan are some examples.

Perhaps it is for this reason that the level of Iran?s presence at the New York conference was significant. While many countries had sent representatives below the ministerial level to the gathering, Iran was represented by its foreign minister Manoutchehr Mottaki.

The speech that Mottaki gave at the meeting and which I personally heard, was an important subject for the media. And because of Iran?s nuclear controversy, and the country?s geopolitical position in the regional security map, the posture that Iran takes regarding security and disarmament is highly visible to world public opinion. So at the New York conference two countries were noted most by the media: Iran and the United States.

But the parts of Mottaki?s speech that received the most coverage in the American press were those related to his attacks on Israel. This is despite the fact that at least regarding small arms, Iran?s sensitivities have nothing to do with Israel and do not clash. There are of course many reasons to criticize the Israeli government these days (in particular in relation to the current military operations in Gaza), but what is not understandable is the benefits that can be derived by sloganeering against Israel at this forum which should be used to address Iran?s concerns regarding small arms.

There is no doubt that stressing such empty slogans does not contribute an iota to the improvement of the plight of Palestinians or reduce their pain. These slogans have no benefits for the Iranian people as well. And particularly at a time when Iran is accused of striving to acquire nuclear weapons to threaten the existence of Israel, the anti-Israeli slogans of Iranian officials quickly gain wide media attention while everybody waits impatiently to see how the Islamic regime uses the varying international opportunities to prevent a critical confrontation with the world community over its nuclear case.

Under these circumstances, one must really ask whether Iranian officials are honestly aware of the real priorities facing them regarding the short time limit they have to finally resolve the nuclear crises. Or while the foreign policy apparatus of Iran faces is most critical hour, do foreign policy makers of Iran know that they are wasting the small available opportunities to them by making useless slogans and creating waves of opposition against themselves as time slips by?

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When Slogans Attain Supreme Priority

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