 |
|
Might Iran deal on nukes, too?
Tehran showed some geopolitical skill in the manner in which it conducted itself during the prisoner crisis, say experts.
By Peter Grier | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitorfrom the April 6, 2007 edition
Page 1 of 3
Iran's release of its British prisoners is welcome news – but it probably does not mean that Tehran now will be more flexible in its ongoing standoff with the West over its nuclear program.
If anything, Iran showed some geopolitical skill in the manner in which it conducted itself during the prisoner crisis, say experts. Iranian leaders perhaps held the 15 sailors and marines just long enough to appear tough to their domestic audience. Then they suddenly handed them back, before the impasse escalated into a full-out international crisis.
"The lesson to me is that the Iranians are pretty good at calculating leverage," says George Perkovich, an Iran expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
The 15 British military personnel arrived home on April 5 following an early morning departure from Tehran aboard a British Airways flight.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair expressed "profound relief" over the end of the 13-day crisis. In a statement directed at the Iranian people, Blair said "we bear you no ill will."
Iran did not get a public apology from the British for entering Iranian waters. Britain insisted their sailors had been outside Iran's sea line of control.
It was not immediately apparent whether Britain or its US ally had made any concessions to Tehran as part of a release deal. US officials said they were considering a request from Iran's government to send an emissary to meet with five Iranians that have been imprisoned in Iraq since they were seized in a US-led raid in January.
Given the disputes it has with the US and other nations over the crucial issue of its nuclear program, Iran probably did not want the prisoner situation to escalate too much, say some US-based experts.
RSS feed
