Criticism of the Government's Foreign Policy

Iranian blogger, Hamid Ahadi, Rooz Online:

With only two days after the ruling of the Vienna based IAEA’s governing board in which Iran has been ruled to be in violation and its case to be of UN Security Council concern, the focus in Iran is now turning towards the failure of president Ahmadinejad’s first major international policy of enormous importance to the nation, the region and even the world. To sum up, Rooz has held interviews with different national figures and will present them in its pages. ...

Among Iranian newspapers, Aftab Yazd in its editorial criticizes the exaggerations presented by officials about the nuclear discussions and calls on the government officials to be transparent about its international and national talks on the issue, which bears a vital interest on the future direction of the country as a whole.

Khorasan newspaper is even more direct in its writing and says that officials have been exaggerating and disregarding the true events of the issue, thus denying the country an honest understanding and picture of the events related to the nuclear issue. The picture that had been presented to the Iranian nation, the newspaper states, was that all events were moving in Iran’s favor. So when the IAEA voted against Iran, people were understandably shocked. Had an honest picture been presented to the public, they would have been happy with the modest achievements made in this regard. Should the same type of approach continue, people will become hopeless and will not be prepared to deal with the consequences that may emerge down the road. While predicting that pressure on Iran will continue to grow in the coming days and weeks, the editor of Khorasan says that the IAEA decision shows that a military attack on Iran is now out of the question, while very harsh economic sanctions may be the order of the day. He warns of the difficult days ahead. He ends his editorial with some poignant questions that are on people’s minds: Is it really worthwhile to follow the current nuclear policy if this is the price the nation has to pay? Should the matter be referred to the UN Security Council, what are Iran’s options and winning cards?

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Sharq newspaper also editorializes on the subject and calls for a national consensus and the prevention of an international coalition against Iran. National consensus can only be achieved through democracy and openness while the international issue can be attained through finding honest good friends. The writer than advocates the policy of practicing comradeship with friends and patience with enemies.

The existing situation in Iran reminds many of the cautious policies that moderates followed for years to avoid such (IAEA’s harsh resolution against Iran) confrontation and crises, while they have been accused by the hardliners of being too soft on the issue with the international community and unnecessarily caving to their demands. But the moderates themselves have chosen to remain silent at this time, least they be accused of being obstructionists. Yet, some have started to whisper and comment on the issue, so that what comes out of Tehran is not just the yes-men who support anything that the officials do, while the international press vigorously debates the issues. In Tehran while the officials may continue to tow the line that we must our ties with the world and pay whatever price our demands require, the majority of those on this plateau think differently.