The Scum at the Top
Commentary on the Rats in Washington
US may open diplomatic outpost in Iran
By Matthew Lee and Anne Gearan
AP News/Excite
© June 23, 2008
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration is considering
setting up a diplomatic outpost in Iran in what would
mark a dramatic official U.S. return to the country
nearly 30 years after the American embassy was overrun
and the two nations severed relations.
Even as it threatens the Iranian regime with sanctions
and possible military action over its nuclear program,
the administration is floating the idea of opening a U.S.
interests section in Tehran similar to the one the State
Department runs in Havana, diplomatic and political
officials told The Associated Press on Monday.
Like the one in communist Cuba, an interest section,
or de facto embassy, in the Iranian capital would give
the United States a presence on the ground through which
it can communicate directly with students, dissidents and
others without endorsing the government, one official said.
It would process visa applications and serve as a
center for American cultural outreach to locals, the
officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity to
discuss internal deliberations.
Now, the U.S. has no diplomatic presence in Iran and
relies on the Swiss Embassy in Tehran to serve as its
"protecting power." The Swiss now pass messages to the
Iranian foreign ministry on Washington's behalf and
handle the affairs U.S. citizens in the country.
The idea of a separate U.S. flag office was born in
part out of concern about Switzerland's decision earlier
this year to sign a long term gas contract with Iran.
The United States now has a small office in the Gulf
state of Dubai that handles routine visa matters for
Iranians but officials say it is not easily accessible
and unable to do the work that an interests section
could do.
The interests section concept is an old idea now being
revisited by a very small group of diplomats and political
officials at the State Department, with the blessing of
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
Rice declined to confirm or deny the idea, which was
first reported in a Washington Post opinion column on
Monday.
But, without being asked, she said the United States
wanted more Iranians to come to the United States and
hinted that the current arrangement in Dubai was not
satisfactory.
"We know that it's difficult for Iranians sometimes to
get to Dubai," she told reporters Monday aboard her
plane en route to a conference in Germany. "We want more
Iranians visiting the United States. ... We are determined
to reach out to the Iranian people."
Rice is intrigued by the idea and has asked for an
analysis of its feasibility and implications, the
officials said.
Iran has operated an interests section in Washington for
years, processing visa applications and having eyes on
the ground in the U.S. capital. But the United States has
refused to have any diplomatic presence in Tehran since
the 1979 Islamic Revolution and embassy hostage crisis.
The officials said Iran would be hard pressed to deny
the United States permission for a reciprocal presence
in Tehran.
The idea of an interests section has percolated at the
State Department for several years, and was championed
by the former third-ranking diplomat, Undersecretary of
State Nicholas Burns, several officials said. The renewed
effort is now being led by Burns' successor, William Burns,
officials said.
Asked about the possibility of opening the office, State
Department spokesman Tom Casey said he was not aware of
any such plans.
"I can't guarantee you that there aren't people somewhere
in the U.S. government talking about it, but it's
certainly not anything that's been decided nor is it
anything that I would expect to see decisions on in,
you know, the near future," Casey said.
In earlier incarnations, the idea was opposed by some
White House officials, and at times by other officials
at the State Department. Its fate in the waning days of
the Bush administration is far from clear, although a
variety of events in the past six months probably have
given the idea greater currency.
A U.S. intelligence analysis last year concluded that
Iran was not actively working to build a nuclear warhead,
although it could resume such work. The conclusion took
the air out of the notion that the United States might
launch a military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities
before President Bush leaves office.
At the same time, U.S. diplomatic outreach to Iran has
gone nowhere. Opening an interests section now would thus
not put at risk fruitful talks.
William Burns, the officials said, is eager to demonstrate
U.S. goodwill to the Iranian people even while tensions
between the governments run high amid speculation that
either the United States or Israel may use military force
against Iran's nuclear facilities.
Burns and his backers see exchange programs and direct
on-the-ground outreach to Iranians as the best way to
overcome years of hostility, the officials said.
Lee reported from Berlin, where he's traveling with
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
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Last Modified:
September 22, 2008