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By : Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor

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Iran’s treasury is overflowing. President Hassan Rowhani, touring European capitals on a shopping spree, is being treated like royalty. Italy was so keen not to offend the sensitivities of their guest that white panels were placed around ancient statues in a museum and was rewarded for its hospitality with deals totalling over $18 billion. French government welcomed Rowhani promising a new beginning in relations prior to the mutual signing of 20 lucrative agreements worth billions.

They say money talks. This time it is shouting out loud, trumping Europe’s so-called values and its tried and trusted friends. Forgotten is Iran’s shocking human rights record along with its proxies, aggression towards Saudi Arabia and Gulf states; concerns regarding its partnership with the Syrian regime conveniently shelved. Ignored are the Ayatollah Khamenei’s chants of “Death to America” and “Death to Israel”. Glossed over are its repression of the Iranian people and its relegation of minorities, such as the Ahwazi Arabs, to third class citizen status.

It was left to ordinary citizens who took to the streets of Paris and Rome as well as children in the bombed-out Syrian city of Aleppo to vent their anger at Rowhani’s grand European tour. “Ask Iran to stop killing us in our country” read the children’s posters. But Italy and France had more important priorities. This was not the moment for finger-wagging in their view when the Iranian President was poised to sign on a whole host of dollar illuminated dotted lines.

Parallel universe

It is as if we have woken up to find ourselves in a parallel universe where everything we hold dear has been reversed. Iran signed up to abandoning a nuclear weapons program it had binned in 2009 according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, and is promptly welcomed into the international community fold like a long lost favorite son flush with a bonanza of up to $100 billion and the opening of doors to oil, gas and trade deals.

As if the sight of European heads of state curry favoring the representative of a country considered enemy state few months ago is not humiliating enough, the United States is accepting Iran’s retorts with a virtual “Thank you, Sir!”

Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry have robbed the American people of their pride

Khalaf Ahmad Al Habtoor

First we hear that Iran detained 10 U.S. naval personnel whose vessel “accidentally” strayed into Iranian waters. They were made to kneel with their hands behind their heads on the deck of their own ship before being paraded on Iranian State TV to offer apologies. Quite a propaganda coup for Iranian authorities and the hordes of anti-Western hard liners! And even as Iran was milking their captives’ humiliation for all its worth, the White House assured Americans thus: “We do not see this as hostile intent. They have been well treated.”

And now we read the headlines. “Iran warned U.S. warship to leave waters near the Strait of Hormuz” is followed by a report beginning, “Iran navy warned a U.S. warship on Wednesday to leave waters in the Sea of Oman near an area where the Islamic Republic was performing military drills.” The U.S. vessel beat a hasty retreat even though it was in international waters and was later accused by Iran’s fleet commander of spying on Iran’s activities.

The question now for Saudi Arabia and Gulf states, which have been assured by President Barack Obama that their security is paramount, is how can the U.S. cooperate with us against Iranian designs when its own navy appears all at sea and its Commander-in-Chief hails the new détente and makes excuses for Iran’s behavior?

How much pride is the most powerful country, with the strongest military on earth, willing to swallow and why is Obama doing his utmost to keep the ayatollahs pleased? It is hard to believe that the U.S. that has always flexed its muscles to save a single American citizen is now making prisoner swap deals to release seven dual nationals.

A top Iranian commander reportedly disclosed that an amount of $1.7 billion was paid in exchange for their freedom. The State Department issued a statement to the effect the amount was paid in relation to a pre-1979 case related to a sale of military equipment plus $1.3 billion in negotiated interest. That is a pretext to cover America’s long-held policy of not paying rogue states or terrorists to avoid encouraging further trouble. But when the payment was purportedly due in the 1970s, only a simpleton would forget to ask “why now?”

It is little wonder Rowhani’s smile is wide these days when billions are pouring in courtesy of the Obama administration that initiated the sanctions-lifting and the unfreezing of Iranian assets, a hefty portion of which will be spent on bolstering Iran’s military capability and militias on Arab lands.

Iran’s policies towards the West and its meddling in the affairs of Arab states remain unchanged. Its leaders’ rhetoric may have softened temporarily as they are desperate to revitalize their country’s aviation industry with new airplanes and spare parts, not to mention securing buyers for its oil and other commodities. They must be chuckling seeing the haste with which major European states are racing to re-open their embassies in Tehran while showering the Iranians with praise and invitations for state visits.

The upper hand

Let us face it, Iran has gained the upper hand merely because it has agreed to more intrusive IAEA monitoring for a 10-year period and has put a percentage of its centrifuges to bed. Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry have robbed the American people of their pride. They have diminished the international standing of their great nation that not so long ago inspired respect and instilled fear in the hearts of its enemies.

Obama has been widely accused of leading from behind on foreign policy. Not so today! He is the one who is being led and if GCC member states fail to recognize how the Obama administration is wittingly or unwittingly altering the regional order, I am afraid we may be being led toward disaster.

It seems an age ago since the Muslim world was excited hearing Obama’s promises made during a visit to Cairo University in 2009. He called for a new beginning between the United States and Muslims. He pledged to give Iraq to the Iraqis whereas it is a de facto province of Iran. He pledged to pursue a Palestinian state with patience and dedication, which has now been scrubbed off his “to-do” list.

He later stepped back from rescuing the Syrian people and played his part in toppling of Muammar Qaddafi before abandoning that country to armed militias and terrorists. He is now complicit in furthering Iran’s territorial and ideological ambitions.

I can only respectfully ask GCC heads of states to take a long hard look at the big picture and take decisions accordingly. If America continues to bend to Tehran’s diktats perhaps it is time to re-evaluate our relationship with Washington. A friend who plays both sides is no friend at all.

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Khalaf Ahmad al-Habtoor is a prominent UAE businessman and public figure. He is Chairman of the Al Habtoor Group – one of the most successful conglomerates in the Gulf. Al Habtoor is renowned for his knowledge and views on international political affairs; his philanthropic activity; his efforts to promote peace; and he has long acted as an unofficial ambassador for his country abroad. Writing extensively on both local and international politics, he publishes regular articles in the media and has released a number of books. Al-Habtoor began his career as an employee of a local UAE construction firm and in 1970 established his own company, Al Habtoor Engineering. The UAE Federation, which united the seven emirates under the one flag for the first time, was founded in 1971 and this inspired him to undertake a series of innovative construction projects – all of which proved highly successful.

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Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in the Column section are their own and do not reflect RiyadhVision’s point-of-view.

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