Talking to the Enemy -Bret Stephens
Iran is bargaining over a nuclear program that it has no right to possess.
In America, we prosecute extortion rackets. We don't recognize, as an unalterable fact, the rights of local mafias to hold neighborhoods hostage. We do so because we know that to do otherwise is to import the law of the jungle into civil society.
The world at large is not America, and we can't bust every extortion racket in it. But neither are we obliged, by self-interest or self-respect, to be played by every extortionist who comes our way...
This is why we know better than to talk to al-Qaeda. This is why we should know better than to talk to the Irans and North Koreas of the world.
(Wall Street Journal)
Is Obama Wasting His Time Trying to Court the Saudis? -Michael Crowley
In Obama's first seven months, the Saudi kingdom has stymied or stalled administration efforts on multiple fronts. The White House is scrambling to win cooperation and avoid affront, but, in the end, the problem may simply be that Obama needs the Saudis more than they need him.
It's true that the Saudis fear Iran and welcome U.S. efforts to stop its nuclear program. But the Saudis are equally suspicious that Obama will cut a deal with Tehran that leaves Riyadh feeling more threatened than ever by Shia power.
Iran is bargaining over a nuclear program that it has no right to possess.
In America, we prosecute extortion rackets. We don't recognize, as an unalterable fact, the rights of local mafias to hold neighborhoods hostage. We do so because we know that to do otherwise is to import the law of the jungle into civil society.
The world at large is not America, and we can't bust every extortion racket in it. But neither are we obliged, by self-interest or self-respect, to be played by every extortionist who comes our way...
This is why we know better than to talk to al-Qaeda. This is why we should know better than to talk to the Irans and North Koreas of the world.
(Wall Street Journal)
Is Obama Wasting His Time Trying to Court the Saudis? -Michael Crowley
In Obama's first seven months, the Saudi kingdom has stymied or stalled administration efforts on multiple fronts. The White House is scrambling to win cooperation and avoid affront, but, in the end, the problem may simply be that Obama needs the Saudis more than they need him.
It's true that the Saudis fear Iran and welcome U.S. efforts to stop its nuclear program. But the Saudis are equally suspicious that Obama will cut a deal with Tehran that leaves Riyadh feeling more threatened than ever by Shia power.
At the same time, the industrialization of China and India means that the Saudis have plenty of other customers for their oil. And, if there's anything that motivates King Abdullah and his kin above all else, it is fear of an uprising by the Saudi "street." That means that the Saudis will always take care to champion - and demagogue - the Palestinian cause, making them difficult partners in pursuing Middle East peace.
(New Republic)
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(New Republic)
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