EA's Chris Emery in The Guardian: "Iran Reserves Judgement"

Chris Emery, who writes regularly for Enduring America on US-Iranian relations and Iranian politics, writes in the Comment is Free section of The Guardian on Iran's response to the Obama approach for "engagement". The article, which has already provoked heated debate amongst readers, offers an analysis which goes well beyond the immediate reaction in most of the American and British press:

Iran Reserves Judgement
CHRIS EMERY

The cautious response from Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to Barack Obama's new year greeting can be interpreted as an effort to contain the debate on US-Iranian engagement at a crucial moment in Iranian politics. Khamenei, after taking a day to contemplate his response, moved to prevent the issue distracting Iran's political leaders. His message to the Iranian political system and America was the same; Iranian domestic and economic politics, including the presidential elections, must now take precedent. For this reason, it is probably unrealistic to expect any major public gestures by Iranian officials until after the June elections.

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Comments

[Josh Mull]

Brilliant take, but there's something that bothers me about his characterization of the Hillary-Iran relationship. I'm not sure if you can reconcile Khameini's sophistication as a political player with him taking Hillary's late-primary hawkishness seriously. I suppose you can, it just feels off.