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Iran, whose security situation has been deteriorating since the end of the Iraqi war in 2003, is looking forward to a less hostile western neighbor. But its efforts are being challenged when reality unfolds its uncooperative nature.
Since the Iraqi war, Iran has become the last substantial threat to the US presence in the strategic Middle East. Meanwhile, the US military deployment in Iraq has also pulled Washington and Tehran geo-politically nearer.
"A coin has two sides," the proverb goes. Iran was forced to convince itself of its credibility and testify the other side of the Iraqi coin.
Indeed, the downfall of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and the turbulence thereafter in the country also lit Tehran's hope that it can take advantage of the situation and promote an amiable western neighbor.
Therefore, when the US in April asked Iran to help end violence in Iraq, Tehran made a positive response by sending a high-level delegation to Baghdad to play a role in a bid for benign developments of the situation. Unfortunately, the assassination of Iranian diplomat Khalil Naimi on April 15 proved the complexity of the aborted mission and ushered in the hardship of shaping a perfect coin.
Following this benign bud's withering, what has emerged turned out to be even more despairing for the Iranians. The US began to tone up its accusation that Iran was interfering with Iraq's internal affairs with its influence upon the Shiite Muslims in this war-torn country, which was echoed by some Iraqis more and more loudly.
Even so, after the transfer of power in Iraq, Iran immediately extended its willingness to build cooperation with the interim government.
There is no denying that the Iraqi side made a somewhat agreeable response, which was featured by the visit of a 300-member Iraqi trade delegation on Aug. 1, led by Hamed Al-Bayati, deputy foreign minister of Iraq. At the same time, many Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, publicly attached importance to economic cooperation with Iran.
However, the comforting atmosphere in trade arena failed to extend. Different voices never fade away. Hazem al-Shaalan, defense minister of the interim Iraqi government, is the flagman of the Iraqis who pour cold water on promotion of friendship between the two neighbors.
Shaalan has been accusing Iran of interfering in Iraqi internal affairs, an allegation staged by the US for long. Recently, he even designated Iran as the No. 1 enemy of Iraq, saying Tehran was pursuing goals to prevent democracy in the country.
In reaction, Iran managed to play down Shaalan's remarks, saying his view did not reflect Baghdad's official stance, and formally invited Prime Minister Allawi to visit Iran.
On the other side, Allawi also tried to dilute Shaalan's hostility by repeatedly stressing that his country's relations with Iran are sound. "I will visit Iran. We have no problems with our neighbors," he said on Aug. 16.
However, verbal enmity was not diluted ultimately; on the contrary, it has been materialized by a series of unfriendly incidents witnessed in the first half of August, which aggravated relations between Iran and Iraq.
Fereydoun Jahani, an Iranian diplomat, was held hostage by an armed group calling themselves Islamic Army of Iraq near the central Iraqi city of Karbala On Aug. 4, when he was on the way to open a consulate in the city.
Five days later, Mostafa Darban, Baghdad bureau chief of the official IRNA News Agency, was arrested by Iraqi police, along with two of his Iraqi staff. Some Iranian people viewed it as a calculated move.
Then, an Iraqi journalist working for Iran's state Arabic language Al-Alam TV channel was arrested in the Iraqi holy city of Najaf on Aug. 15, for violating the local police's order of leaving.
As to these negative developments, Iran has remained calm so far and never quitted negotiations with the Iraqi interim government. Nobody doubts the possibility that all of these issues will be solved in the coming days. But what underlies would not melt away for the time being and would be of greater importance.
In all, Iran's endeavor to procure an amiable western neighbor is confronted with substantial challenges.
(Xinhua News Agency August 20, 2004)
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