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Thread: Iran's regional ambitions are clear and worrying

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    Default Iran's regional ambitions are clear and worrying

    Iran's regional ambitions are clear and worrying
    Arabs have very real, legitimate worries about Iran's increased muscle-flexing.

    Sharif Nashashibi by Sharif Nashashibi


    Iran has been portrayed as a regional threat for decades. Such portrayals have at times been fabricated, exaggerated or convenient. However, Tehran's recent actions and statements leave no doubt about its regional ambitions.

    This month, Ali Younisi, an adviser to President Hassan Rouhani, said Iran is now an empire, and Iraq "has become part of this empire". Also in March, Iran's top general, Mohammad Ali Jafari, praised "the ever-increasing export" of his country's 1979 "Islamic revolution", which "has entered a new chapter".

    In February, Qassem Suleimani, head of the Quds Force - the foreign wing of the powerful Revolutionary Guards Corps - said: "Today we see signs of the Islamic revolution being exported throughout the region, from Bahrain to Iraq and from Syria to Yemen and North Africa."


    Alarm over Iran’s rising influence

    In September, Iranian MP Ali Reza Zakani, who is reportedly close to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, said his country now controls four Arab capitals - Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus and Sanaa - which "belong to the Islamic Iranian revolution".

    Clear intent

    These are not nuanced statements that are open to interpretation and context. They show Tehran's clear intent to project its power regionally, and its allies are serving - unwittingly or otherwise - as tools in this grand project. This can no longer be discounted as the ramblings of conspiracy theorists or the propaganda of its sworn enemies.

    Tehran has troops actively engaged in two Arab countries - Iraq and Syria - and has proxy forces in two others - Lebanon and Yemen. Such direct Iranian involvement in Arab states is unprecedented, and ironic given Tehran's denunciations of foreign meddling in countries' internal affairs.

    Furthermore, its involvement is in support of sectarian governments and militias that have committed countless atrocities. This reveals the hypocrisy of a regime that highlights its enemies' human rights abuses.

    No wonder, then, that opinion polls show that Iran's expanded Middle East footprint has left it more isolated regionally.

    "Most Arabs and Muslims now hold decidedly negative views of Iran and are solidly opposed to Iran's regional ambitions," wrote James Zogby, managing director of Zogby Research Services (ZRS), which has conducted annual polls of regional public opinion vis-a-vis Iran for over a decade.

    The argument that Tehran's more aggressive regional role is necessary to counter Israeli and US hegemony is illogical given the opposition of most Arabs to all three. The solution to hegemony is not more hegemons, but none at all.

    "In the eyes of many Arabs," Iran has gone from "being perceived as a bastion of principled resistance," to being "viewed as a meddlesome neighbor pursuing a dangerous and divisive agenda," Zogby added.

    So much for promises by Rouhani and his predecessor Mahmoud Ahmedinejad to improve ties with the Arab world.

    Iran's popularity...

    continued

    https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/op...132016267.html

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    Two wars in the region just isn't enough for you is it?
    WATERMARK, GREATEST OF THE TRINITY, ON CHIK-FIL-A
    Quote Originally Posted by Sigmund Freud View Post
    The fields of mediocre chicken sandwiches shall be sowed with salt, so that nothing may ever grow there again.
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    Quote Originally Posted by Quetzalcoatl View Post
    Two wars in the region just isn't enough for you is it?
    I'm not Iranian...

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    Quote Originally Posted by kudzu View Post
    I'm not Iranian...
    "In September, Iranian MP Ali Reza Zakani, who is reportedly close to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, said his country now controls four Arab capitals - Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus and Sanaa - which "belong to the Islamic Iranian revolution".

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    Quote Originally Posted by kudzu View Post
    I'm not Iranian...
    WOOOOOOSH
    WATERMARK, GREATEST OF THE TRINITY, ON CHIK-FIL-A
    Quote Originally Posted by Sigmund Freud View Post
    The fields of mediocre chicken sandwiches shall be sowed with salt, so that nothing may ever grow there again.
    www.gunsbeerfreedom.blogspot.com

    www.gunsbeerfreedom.blogspot.com

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    Quote Originally Posted by Quetzalcoatl View Post
    WOOOOOOSH
    You simply don't know anything about the ME or Iran's ambitions in Yemen and the Arabian Peninsula.

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    Default

    February, Qassem Suleimani, head of the Quds Force - the foreign wing of the powerful Revolutionary Guards Corps - said: "Today we see signs of the Islamic revolution being exported throughout the region, from Bahrain to Iraq and from Syria to Yemen and North Africa."

    In September, Iranian MP Ali Reza Zakani, who is reportedly close to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, said his country now controls four Arab capitals - Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus and Sanaa - which "belong to the Islamic Iranian revolution".
    ^ this. Iranian hegemony in a nutshell.

    Suleimani was seen in Syria if I recall.
    the Qods are running rampant now that Iraq government is basically servile to Iran

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    Quote Originally Posted by anatta View Post
    ^ this. Iranian hegemony in a nutshell.

    Suleimani was seen in Syria if I recall.
    the Qods are running rampant now that Iraq government is basically servile to Iran
    That's true... Shame really and Iran supports Assad as well as HAMAS, Hezbollah and constant friction in Lebanon.

    Back in 1962 the Shah supported the Monarchists in Yemen against the Communists and fought alongside the Saudis.

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    Quote Originally Posted by kudzu View Post
    That's true... Shame really and Iran supports Assad as well as HAMAS, Hezbollah and constant friction in Lebanon.

    Back in 1962 the Shah supported the Monarchists in Yemen against the Communists and fought alongside the Saudis.
    I love your historical knowledge of the region..thanks!

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    Quote Originally Posted by anatta View Post
    I love your historical knowledge of the region..thanks!
    Iran is a spoiler.. They do not want peace in the ME or even a just peace for the Palestinians.

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    Quote Originally Posted by kudzu View Post
    Iran is a spoiler.. They do not want peace in the ME or even a just peace for the Palestinians.
    of course not. why should they? Who's gonna stop them now that Iraq is powerless?

    My personal opinion ( but never have been there) is the the Palestinians are just pawns for the arabs and Iran.
    Nobody really cares about them

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    Quote Originally Posted by kudzu View Post
    Iran's regional ambitions are clear and worrying
    Arabs have very real, legitimate worries about Iran's increased muscle-flexing.

    Sharif Nashashibi by Sharif Nashashibi


    Iran has been portrayed as a regional threat for decades. Such portrayals have at times been fabricated, exaggerated or convenient. However, Tehran's recent actions and statements leave no doubt about its regional ambitions.

    This month, Ali Younisi, an adviser to President Hassan Rouhani, said Iran is now an empire, and Iraq "has become part of this empire". Also in March, Iran's top general, Mohammad Ali Jafari, praised "the ever-increasing export" of his country's 1979 "Islamic revolution", which "has entered a new chapter".

    In February, Qassem Suleimani, head of the Quds Force - the foreign wing of the powerful Revolutionary Guards Corps - said: "Today we see signs of the Islamic revolution being exported throughout the region, from Bahrain to Iraq and from Syria to Yemen and North Africa."


    Alarm over Iran’s rising influence

    In September, Iranian MP Ali Reza Zakani, who is reportedly close to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, said his country now controls four Arab capitals - Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus and Sanaa - which "belong to the Islamic Iranian revolution".

    Clear intent

    These are not nuanced statements that are open to interpretation and context. They show Tehran's clear intent to project its power regionally, and its allies are serving - unwittingly or otherwise - as tools in this grand project. This can no longer be discounted as the ramblings of conspiracy theorists or the propaganda of its sworn enemies.

    Tehran has troops actively engaged in two Arab countries - Iraq and Syria - and has proxy forces in two others - Lebanon and Yemen. Such direct Iranian involvement in Arab states is unprecedented, and ironic given Tehran's denunciations of foreign meddling in countries' internal affairs.

    Furthermore, its involvement is in support of sectarian governments and militias that have committed countless atrocities. This reveals the hypocrisy of a regime that highlights its enemies' human rights abuses.

    No wonder, then, that opinion polls show that Iran's expanded Middle East footprint has left it more isolated regionally.

    "Most Arabs and Muslims now hold decidedly negative views of Iran and are solidly opposed to Iran's regional ambitions," wrote James Zogby, managing director of Zogby Research Services (ZRS), which has conducted annual polls of regional public opinion vis-a-vis Iran for over a decade.

    The argument that Tehran's more aggressive regional role is necessary to counter Israeli and US hegemony is illogical given the opposition of most Arabs to all three. The solution to hegemony is not more hegemons, but none at all.

    "In the eyes of many Arabs," Iran has gone from "being perceived as a bastion of principled resistance," to being "viewed as a meddlesome neighbor pursuing a dangerous and divisive agenda," Zogby added.

    So much for promises by Rouhani and his predecessor Mahmoud Ahmedinejad to improve ties with the Arab world.

    Iran's popularity...

    continued

    https://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/op...132016267.html
    Iraq was a great offset to Iran until Bush stepped in and destroyed Iraq. The Middle East will never be the same again.

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    Quote Originally Posted by floridafan View Post
    Iraq was a great offset to Iran until Bush stepped in and destroyed Iraq. The Middle East will never be the same again.
    I agree.. What Bush did was beyond stupid, but what does Iran really gain from making life worse in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen? Have they improved the plight of the Palestinians since 1979?

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    Quote Originally Posted by kudzu View Post
    You simply don't know anything about the ME or Iran's ambitions in Yemen and the Arabian Peninsula.
    You simply don't know anything about staying the fuck out of affairs that aren't yours. How many wars is enough for you? 9? 50? You certainly aren't willing to fight in them though are you chicken hawk?
    WATERMARK, GREATEST OF THE TRINITY, ON CHIK-FIL-A
    Quote Originally Posted by Sigmund Freud View Post
    The fields of mediocre chicken sandwiches shall be sowed with salt, so that nothing may ever grow there again.
    www.gunsbeerfreedom.blogspot.com

    www.gunsbeerfreedom.blogspot.com

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    Quote Originally Posted by Quetzalcoatl View Post
    You simply don't know anything about staying the fuck out of affairs that aren't yours. How many wars is enough for you? 9? 50? You certainly aren't willing to fight in them though are you chicken hawk?
    What is wrong with you? I am not proposing war against Iran.. I am concerned about what they are doing in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and Yemen.

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