Iran Plays Down Political Impact of U.S. Quake Help



Dec 30, 10:28 AM (ET)

By Parisa Hafezi

KERMAN, Iran (Reuters) - President Mohammad Khatami said Tuesday U.S. aid to earthquake victims in Iran, while welcome, would not alter the state of relations between the two arch foes who broke off ties nearly a quarter century ago.

"I don't think this incident will change our relations with the United States," Khatami told a news conference in the capital of southeastern Kerman province where officials say up to 50,000 people were killed in a quake that struck Friday.

Secretary of State Colin Powell said in an interview with the Washington Post published Tuesday that Washington was open to restoring a dialogue with Iran after "encouraging" moves by the Islamic Republic in recent months.

Powell referred to Iran's willingness to accept U.S. aid for the earthquake relief effort, paving the way for the first U.S. military planes to land in Iran in over 20 years.

"There are things happening and therefore we should keep open the possibility of dialogue at an appropriate point in the future," Powell said.

But Khatami, who is viewed as a foreign policy moderate in Iran, played down the importance of the U.S. assistance.

"In incidents like this governments normally do not consider their differences," he said. "But this has got nothing to do with political issues. The problems in Iran-U.S. relations are rooted in history."

"Nevertheless, I thank all...those who helped us and showed sympathy despite our different viewpoints," Khatami said.

Washington broke ties with Iran shortly after the 1979 Islamic revolution when radical students stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran and held 52 hostages for 444 days.

President Bush last year included Iran along with North Korea and Iraq under Saddam Hussein in an "axis of evil" developing nuclear and chemical weapons and supporting terrorist groups.

U.S. and Iranian officials held talks over Afghanistan and Iraq in Geneva earlier this year. But Washington halted those meetings after accusing Iran of harboring al-Qaeda members linked to suicide bomb attacks in Saudi Arabia in May.

Khatami said that for Iran to restore ties with Washington it would "have to see a change in its methods ... to create a kind of hole in the wall of mistrust between the two countries."

However, he pointed out that humanitarian aid from nongovernmental organizations in the United States "shows there is no enmity between the people of Iran and the American nation."

Did anyone seriously expect them to warm up to us just because we help them?  The people who run Iran are not exactly part of the Kum-ba-ya crowd. More like they're part of some kind of Axis of Evil or something.

But hopefully this disaster might show the Iranians that their government's regime and policies keep it in the non-integrating gap of globalization (and hence broke ass poor with no future and living in mud huts) and might want to try getting rid of the mullahs.

Should we send aid if we don't even maintain diplomatic realitions???

If I don't like my neighbor because he stole my car, or killed my friend. I'm sure as hell not gonna shed a tear if he is laying in the street bleeding to death....and I wouldn't call 911 for him either.
His (original)actions had consequences.

But they did release those three bikers they'd taken hostage this time, right?

Fuck'em, they are next...One way or another. Their younger generation has about had it with the gov't.

Shouldn't we just do the right thing, not expecting anything in return?

LMAO. We have got to be the bigest schmucks on the planet.

Absolutely. But if you pull someone out of their butrning car you may not expect anything in return, though you sure wouldn't expect a kick in the balls and a "FU".

Iran who !?

Who could ever forget?

"Shoot a hole-ah in the Ayatollah!"

International diplomacy is more complicated than dealing with the next door neighbor.
We should be cultivating the general population in Iran.

I have heard this several times before...that the "younger generation has had it with the gov't" but it was always through a second hand source...like here.

Does anyone have any links to good information that backs up such allegations?

Do you really think the government of Iran represents the people?

The people on the ground, digging their families out of the rubble while trying to survive themselves, will undoubtedly be grateful for the assistance we (and other nations) are giving them.

If the people of Iraq can welcome our troops, what makes anyone think that the people of Iran will be any different?

What would you expect the Iranian leadership to say?  

I have two thoughts on this matter.

1.  If Abu the goat herder receives direct assistance from the USA to help recover the bodies of his 6 children, and feed, cloth, and shelter him and his mother, then we may not have to worry about him when it is time to hunt down the AQ shitheads in his country.

2.  50,000 dead Iranians is a good start.

America is always accused of never doing anything without having an ulterior motive.

Why not show that we really do something for other human beings without expecting something in return.

If they kick and scream, then so be it, we have taken the higher road, and done what is right.

We're there to assist the common folk, not the dirt bag rulers.Too bad the quake didn't level Tehran.Sooner or later it'll happen.[;D]

I ALMOST wondered if I was bad for smiling when I heard about the earthquake & remembering the hostages in 1978 under Carter.

I hope their whole country falls down around their ears & pigs piss on the remains. But, ask me how **I** feel?  [}:D]

Dude, what planet do you live on????

That "moral high road" bullshit will lead us to hell. BTW, IMHO Iran should have been right after Afghanistan. But I guess it's better to have U.S. troops on both sides of them as opposed to one!

thedave correct me if I am wrong but didn't you just relocate to Colorado from California?

What did ya expect? Did they warm up to us after the arms for hostages deal back in the 80s? Fuck no. All we got were 5 or 6 hostages and they got missles. These people are our mortal enemy and that won't change.

Guys, we are talking about 10's of thousands dead and dying. In general, they were doing nothing against anyone, they were just living lives, working, eating, sleeping, laughing, crying, having children. Everything we do on an ongoing basis.

I am not talking about the relatively few extremist's that hate us. But it rubs it in on those that hate us, that we are there helping, where they can't.

I grieve for the thousands killed. If we help or not, doesn't really make a difference, but to help and expect something in return, is not really helping, is it?

What makes you think that the people of Iran will even know that any assistance came from us?

Zippy,

Here’s a good start:  www.danielpipes.org/article/468

It’s astounding you could get the five individuals in this article to agree on anything.  I’m not familiar with Dr. Esposito, but have read considerable articles my Messrs. Rashid, Buchanan, Woolsey, and Dr. Pipes.  They all have excellent and unique perspectives.  Google search these guys and a gent named Bernard Lewis (Princeton prof, but readable).  Happy hunting.

I hope to see a bunch of mullahs hanging from lampposts, and a free, capitalist Iran in the next five years.  I propose it won’t hurt to help a few average Iranian citizens, seeing as we’re spending money like drunken sailors on shore leave anyway (No offense to drunken sailors on shore leave:  get some[sex])

As much as the Iranians piss me off, I have to agree with this train of thought.

I wonder how big an earthquake 20 or 30, 35 Megaton warheads would cause?

In the eyes of the rest of the world, it does feel good knowing that the US responded faster than the dirtballs that run the country!  The Iranian gov't has already received bad press for sitting on their asses.

A few ungrateful idividuals in the Iranian government doesn't represent the whole country.  I've said it to people for the last twenty years and I'll say it again; we have more friends in one town in Iran than we do in the entire country of Iraq.  Iran has a huge young population born after 1980.  A lot of them don't want the greedy and immoral parts of western society in their country, but would like good relations with the U.S.A.  They just don't want their country full of Walmarts and the like and I don't blame them.

Too bad the earthquake didn't happen in Iraq.

Myself and a few others caught holy hell for saying NO to aid when the question came up as to whether we should or not.

Glad I stood by my convictions!!! FUCK 'EM!!! I said it then I say it now!! [devil]