An Alternate Witness

I haven't been so engaged in current events recently, but this recent development really excites me.

Living in Jordan, right along the flight path between Israel and Iran, I have been watching the developments between those two countries and the U.S. with a great deal of trepidation. While U.S. rhetoric has softened just enough during the Obama administration to keep me from real panic, I have still been worried about the future of this region.

That's why it's so exciting to me to see a third party, Turkey and Brazil, step in and take a mediating role. One a majority Muslim nation and traditional ally of Iran for centuries, the other a historical sympathizer to the Non-Aligned Movement of which Iran is a part, and both on the U.N. Security Council, these two countries are uniquely poised to appeal to Iran's political interests without making it look like Iran is bowing to the Great Satan.

As for Kinzer's claim that "Clinton, however, may not have been on the same political page as the White House," reflecting "Clinton's continuing isolation from the inner-circle of American foreign policymaking on crucial world issues," I don't see it that way at all. I think more than just Brazil and Turkey are playing "good cop, bad cop" as Kinzer suggests. That Sec. Clinton would come out publicly doubtful of Turkey and Brazil's chances of success, while Pres. Obama is encouraging Turkey behind the scenes, reflects a classic "good cop, bad cop" ploy on America's part, too, only in this case the U.S. is the bad cop, and Turkey and Brazil are the good cops. After all, the compromise that's been agreed to was first proposed by the U.S., but accepting the proposal from Muslim Turkey and Non-Aligned Brazil allows Iran to save just enough face to keep things relatively quiet on the domestic front. That can only be good for everyone.