Iran Risks Fate of Imperial Japan

IT appears that Iran has opened three fronts in the eastern Middle East. Depending on the pressure being applied to Tehran over its nuclear program, it raises and lowers the heat in Iraq, Lebanon, and the Gulf. All of these fronts have been on high alert, as Iran’s confrontation with the international community has intensified and the deadline for imposing sanctions and punishment has drawn closer.

Tehran’s battlefront in Iraq extends deep into the south. The recent shooting along Kuwait’s border with Iraq, which coincided with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s visit to Tehran and his warning to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has raised suspicions. [Annan criticized the Iranian quite openly for denying the Holocaust ] Ahmadinejad’s choice of the Cold War language shows that due to an economy in crisis, Iran’s internal situation is dangerous.

With his extremist methods and by creating disputes both internationally and regionally, the Iranian President is trying to divert the attention of his people from the domestic crisis. This was evident when Ahmadinejad accused the Gulf States of standing with the international community, and when he threatened to set the entire Gulf region aflame if its people dared stand in the way of Tehran’s nuclear program.

Ahmadinejad has no right to accuse the Gulf States or impose his authority over them. As such threats cannot be called politically astute or noble, we consider his threats a reflection of “killing arrogance,” which will eventually bring his end. When the Shah of Iran tried to play the role of a regional cop, we all remember how the Gulf States stood against him. We also remember how the Ayatollah Ali Al-Khomeini’s Islamic Revolution ended the Shah’s dreams.

Now Ahmadinejad wants to play that role, while at the same time trying to convince us that Islamic Revolution has no intention of implementing Tehran’s aggressive, greedy policies to expand its influence throughout the Gulf. Ahmadinejad, who represents the peak of Persian ambition, has taken to the role of a regional cop with such arrogance, that he has even challenged U.S. President George Bush to a debate. The President of Iran wants to debate the reform of the international system, while he is incapable of reforming his own nation’s system.

We speak these words because Iran is an important neighboring country, which should play a cooperative role in tune with the importance of our strategic region. We don’t want Iran to become a victim of its own arrogance and meet the fate of Japan, which was defeated in the World War II after the dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Iran should know that it takes only a tiny spark to ignite a huge fire. World War I was the result of the assassination of the Austrian Crown Prince and World War II was sparked by the ambitions of Adolph Hitler.

We don’t want Ahmadinejad’s name included on the list of those who are held responsible for participating in crimes against humanity. We’re sorry to note that in such a vital region so rich in oil and natural gas, certain foolhardy and adventuresome leaders are willing to jeopardize the peace by accusing others of being [foreign] agents without any proof. These leaders must remember that arrogance is a very dangerous disease.