New Iran report reeks of stale ideas

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United States President Barack Obama may be puzzled as to how to initiate dialogue with Iran, but there are a wealth of pro-Israel pundits advising him in Washington who are crystal clear on the method, purpose and goals of such an approach. These advisors are now attempting to win Obama's approval over certain competing perspectives.

This much is clear from a report by a new "bipartisan" group tailored to assist the Obama administration's formation of a new Iran policy. The new paper fails to present any fresh or innovative ideas with respect to Iran's nuclear standoff, a shortfall that inevitably casts further doubts on one of its signatories, Dennis Ross, who is Washington's point man on Iran.

Although it was not commissioned by the past or present White House, the report, titled "Preventing a cascade of instability: US engagement to check Iranian nuclear progress," carries a badge of legitimacy under the "Presidential Task Force". It is, in fact, the work of a pro-Israel think-tank, the Washington Institute For Near East Policy, that operates as an important arm of the Jewish lobby in Washington. <1>

Thick on familiar accusations against Iran and rather thin on the much-needed specifics of a new US policy toward a Middle East country that has stood up to US hegemony for the past 30 years, the report's main value is in showing the hands of vested interests that actually seek to obviate Obama's search for new ways to deal with Iran. The report simply rehashes the main patterns of previous policies.

http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/KC06Aa01.html

[babylonsister]

1. Do you think your source has an agenda? And maybe

that source also needs some patience?

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2. He clearly doesn't think much of WINEP.

He writes a good deal on Middle Eastern affairs. I don't always like what he has to say. It does appear to me that patience is in short supply when it comes to worrying about what Mr Obama is going to do. I would agree with the OP that a new approach to dealing with Iran is long overdue.

[bemildred]

3. Report: Israel won't wait for diplomatic solution to Iran nukes impasse

Has a link to a pdf of the report.

Iran is likely to obtain a nuclear weapon within a year as it already has access to enough fissionable material to manufacture 50 warheads, according to a report commissioned by a key U.S. think-tank.

The report by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, which is entitled Preventing a Cascade of Instability: U.S. Engagement to Check Iranian Nuclear Progress, notes that Israeli leaders still cling to the belief that a military option is available to stop the regime's nuclear program.

"However, Israelis see the option fading over the next one to two years, not only because of Iran's nuclear progress and dispersion of its program but also because improved Iranian air defenses, especially the expected delivery of the S-300 surface-to-air missile system from Russia, are seen by Israel seriously limiting its military options." "Israel therefore may feel compelled to act before the option disappears," the report, whose authors include members of Congress as well as academics, states.

Dennis Ross, who was recently appointed a special envoy to the Persian Gulf by the Obama administration, also contributed to the report.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1068901.html