Since the 1979 Iranian revolution in which American diplomats in Tehran were taken hostage and held for 444 days, the U.S. has had no discernible policy regarding Iran except to talk endlessly about talking with the handful of ayatollahs that have run that prison nation ever since their takeover. The Shah was no choir boy, but he was a reliable ally. Iran has been in a virtual state of war with the U.S. for 34 years.
When John Kerry replaced Hillary Clinton as our new Secretary of State, Reuters reported that “Iran’s supreme leader Thursday (Feb 7) strongly rejected proposals for direct talks with the United States, effectively quashing suggestions for a breakthrough one-on-one dialogue on the nuclear standoff and potentially other issues.” Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei continues to make it clear that Iran views America as its most detested enemy.
The other piece of news that day was that the USS Harry S. Truman, an aircraft carrier, would not leave for the Persian Gulf as part of the Department of Defense’s two-carrier policy that has been in effect for the past two years. The decision was based on the sequestration expected to go into effect that would cut $4 billion over the next six months, the last half of fiscal year 2013.
Secretary Kerry will be a reliable hand puppet for President Obama. Recall that, during the 2009 protests in the streets of Tehran, Obama offered no support whatever to the Iranian people, saying instead that he didn’t think the U.S. should “meddle” in its internal affairs. In effect, he abandoned the Iranians to further tribulations.