fbpx
Politics Foreign Affairs Culture Fellows Program

The View from Iran

Hasnain Kazim reports on Iranian elite opinion: Of course, it’s difficult to ascertain the views of Iranians. State censorship is tight, and foreign journalists are rarely allowed into the country. Nevertheless, it is possible to make contact with some Iranians. And when you speak with them, you learn something quite surprising: Even if they oppose […]

Hasnain Kazim reports on Iranian elite opinion:

Of course, it’s difficult to ascertain the views of Iranians. State censorship is tight, and foreign journalists are rarely allowed into the country. Nevertheless, it is possible to make contact with some Iranians. And when you speak with them, you learn something quite surprising: Even if they oppose Ahmadinejad, their radical president, most of these Iranians still view their country as the victim in the current circumstances. They also view the West as an enemy and fail to consider or acknowledge that there are massive differences between hawks in Israel and doves within the Obama administration.

The failure to acknowledge “massive differences” might have something to do with the small detail that the differences aren’t all that great. It’s not surprising that the distinction is lost on these Iranians. There are some important tactical differences between Israel and the Obama administration, but both want to impose severe punitive sanctions on Iran while keeping the door to military action open, and the “dovishness” of the administration extends to opposing an attack right now. It’s not hard to see how that distinction might be lost amid the general impression of Western fear and loathing of Iran. Iranian opinion is also going to be shaped by what Iranian media say, and the message they are getting from their media is one designed to make them suspicious of Western policies:

In their heavily censored television broadcasts, Iranians now see images of three American aircraft carriers cruising in the Persian Gulf. On maps, they see how many US military installations are in the region. They hear the government’s anti-Western propaganda. What’s more, they are also suffering from the sanctions imposed by the West.

The Iranians take note of Israel’s military exercises. They hear that Israeli politicians are threatening to launch an attack. They read about the murders of Iranian nuclear scientists. They see that, according to one Gallup poll, 87 percent of Americans view Iran as their No. 1 enemy.

Under these circumstances, why does anyone in the West suppose that Iranians are going to blame their predicament on their own government and turn against the regime?

Advertisement

Comments

The American Conservative Memberships
Become a Member today for a growing stake in the conservative movement.
Join here!
Join here