Iran and the U.S. – More than Nuclear?

FPA event – “Iran and the U.S.: Endless Enemies?”

Ambassador John W. Limbert joined the Foreign Policy Association at The Colony Club this past Wednesday, April 24 to discuss anything but the nuclear situation in Iran.

Limbert’s lecture suggested that if the only topic of U.S.-Iranian relations continues to be nuclear weapons, we will never get to the second, third or fourth topic because the U.S. position on nuclear weapons is and has always been that no one else should have them.

As a diplomat, ambassador and first-ever U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Iran, Limbert has been involved in “non-talks” between Iran and the U.S. for over thirty years.

The only way to get out of the cesspool of contemporary U.S.-Iranian relations is to move on from the highly politicized, trending issue known as “the nuclear threat.” The “testosterone-charged” question of proliferation paints both sides into corners. Discussions on the topic have become “a test of manhood” instead of forward-tracking diplomacy.

Leaving no spare change, Limbert expressed frustration at the Obama administration’s failure to be any different from past administrations. Since 2008, U.S.-Iran relations have “turned to dysfunctional patterns of the past.” There has only been one high-level meeting between the U.S. and Iran since Obama’s election.

“If we just work on the nuclear issue, we’re going to fail,” Limbert stated.

The assertion left audience members wondering, “what else is there to talk about?”

Limbert brought up a similar question of what role outsiders, meaning the U.S., should play in Iranian political disputes. After giving the context of the U.S.’ less-helpful interventions during the Cold War, he thinks the U.S. should butt-out. He used a metaphor of a cornered cat lashing out. Given the enriched stakes, no one wants a lash out right now.

However, without the stakes of a nuclear threat, how do we make U.S. diplomats care about Iran’s agenda? As Limbert quoted, “we prefer to have no business with Iran, but they have business with us.” The buzzy “nuclear threat” is how Iran makes its otherwise ignored business-agenda heard internationally. Even that tactic is apparently not working as Iran’s other agendas centering around oil, religion, and non-nuclear security issues go relatively un-discussed.

Ambassador Limbert believes the first step is conversation. He advocates the need for engagement through the National Iranian American Council, an organization dedicated to the cause of conversation.

And that conversation is not about nuclear weapons.