President Obama’s close confidant and long-time friend of First Lady Michelle Obama, Chicago lawyer Valerie Jarrett, is leading behind the scenes negotiations with representatives of Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, Israeli officials with knowledge of the effort say.
Jarret, who was born in the Iranian city of Shiraz to American parents, is a senior advisor to US President Barack Obama and, Israeli officials claim, initiated and led secret talks with Iran in Bahrain, although she does not have any past experience with such high-stakes diplomacy.
Last month, the New York Times reported that the US and Iran have agreed to one-on-one negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program immediately following the US presidential elections. Officials later tried to deny this, but admitted the secret talks took place for a meeting in principle.
Such high-level, one-on-one negotiations between the Iranian regime and Washington would be unprecedented, and many have hopes that a grand bargain will be agreed up.
But even if the talks do occur in the event of a victory for Obama, it’s not clear they’ll be fruitful. Talks have floundered at various levels throughout Obama’s first term.
The closest the parties came to settlement was a deal in which Iran would halt 20 percent uranium enrichment in exchange for swapping enriched uranium for foreign-made fuel rods. Iran initially rejected the deal, but reluctantly agreed after Brazil and Turkey joined in the discussions. By that point, the Obama administration rejected Iranian acquiescence, in favor of sanctions.
Most of the so-called diplomacy with Iran has been “predicated on intimidation, illegal threats of military action, unilateral ‘crippling’ sanctions, sabotage, and extrajudicial killings of Iran’s brightest minds,” writes Reza Nasri at PBS Frontline’s Tehran Bureau. These postures have spoiled much chance to resolve the issues.
After the failed talks in 2009 and 2010, wherein Obama ended up rejecting the very deal he demanded the Iranians accept, as Harvard professor Stephen Walt has written, the Iranian leadership “has good grounds for viewing Obama as inherently untrustworthy.” Former CIA analyst Paul Pillar has concurred, arguing that Iran has “ample reason” to believe, “ultimately the main Western interest is in regime change.”
What? Send someone who grew up in Iran speaking Persian, a lawyer, with no Israel lobby credentials, to negotiate in good faith with Iran?
Sounds like a recipe for disaster.
Quick, afix a parachute to Dennis Ross!
Hell, it's a whole lot better to send an Iranian-born, Farsi-speaking lawyer with no AIPAC " credentials" to negotiate in good faith with Iran.
Sounds like very good sense to me. At least she won't need an interpreter, who usually screws up the process, anyway.
Way much better than some AIPAC-controlled dummy.
Are you being sarcastic? I hope so…she's definitely AIPAC material….
Aren't they all AIPAC material? That is the crux of all of our problems in the USA from 9-11, to the economy , to multiple wars, to a government that gave the bankers immunity and made them rich after breaking the nation. Our government is run for the benefit of politicians kissing up to a wealthy lobby whose mission is to keep its own members rich and powerful and USA being a lapdog for another country, just to get reelected. They do this rather than governing for the betterment of the USA.
Oooops didn't realize I had developed such a terrible commenting reputation ….most of it obtained over the last many years from posting at Breitbart.com and not sipping their kool aid.
That's the point.
Also
"The closest the parties came to settlement was a deal in which Iran would halt 20 percent uranium enrichment in exchange for swapping enriched uranium for foreign-made fuel rods."
How about just okaying 20% enrichment under IAEA supervision, call the sanctions off, give the finger to the Israeli inbreds, let Europeans prostate themselves to whatever "political goal" they have fixated on at the moment, tell the Saudi Royalties then can f*ck themselves, then go home for a Big Mac and some Fries?
It's so easy.
That is the Obama's last chance to get his and Hillary Clinton wrong stands in middle east policies to be corrected, if not then and after the election you will see more bloodshed allover Middle east.
I think we can pretty much count on the bloodshed there regardless, mojo. Bloodshed takes weapons makes money. Bloodshed and empire is the whole point.
"Such high-level, one-on-one negotiations between the Iranian regime and Washington would be unprecedented, and many have hopes that a grand bargain will be agreed up."
I agree that the talks will be about a grand bargain and it will make history. Only if Obama wins the election. The talks will either throw israel under the bus, which is a good thing, or it will bring and end to all the war rhetoric.
If obama loses the election then it's all over. But if they are not able to make a bargain then it will be over as well.
Did you see what roger finally admitted?
Roger replied to your comment on Crunch Time for the Candidates – Left, Right & Center on KCRW / Left, Right & Center – KCRW:
But it's the Jews that murder the children.
****************** "But it's the Jews that murder the children."………………….
No. actually…. it's the (us) U.S. [& england] that excel so profoundly at terminating little ones……
How many HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS of CHILDREN died in the great shock and awe show which Bush and his bosses took to Iraq..?? and It's not as if the "Jews" have clean hands in that genocide….. but It was the American military doing the lions werk killing the kids of Iraq..
Tuesday is a good day to announce a breakthrough
You want change go out and vote for Rocky Anderson.
mojo,
Writing in my capacity as a regular reader and not a staffer, while ultimately it doesn't matter if one votes for Rocky Anderson, he seems like he might be comfortable with 'humanitarian intervention.'
http://dissidentvoice.org/2012/02/an-exchange-on-…
Angela, it is not that he "seams like he might be comfortable with humanitarian intervention" or if you mean the humanitarian aspects of the entire matter not wanting for USA federal government to be bound by a militarism regime or if you like a militarism system deciding for the American people how to live, when to have war and when not, or with whom and whom not. All that comes to start from a point that is based on humanitarism aspects of a fare and juste politics here at home, not the one who promise "hope" where for are still waiting for their hope for a functioning democracy to happen, hope is a hollow wording, is based on a delusional, is based on manipulation and some are good at it mimicking Dr. Martin Luther king and his visions. In that prospect, the humanitarian part of a just and fare social politics is for the people needs to work for people, because is simply chosen by the people, not the corporations or those who can and have a influence on politician, among other the us military complex, bankers, and in general the Wall Street executives whom divide and decide for people how poor they need to be before they become richer then yesterday.
Ms. Jarrett happens to be Jewish. She is a Diaspora Israeli.
America's entire push against Iran is primarily about Israeli 'security concerns', Jarrett is just the latest face of American Zionism.
US-Israeli dictate: The Jewish State may possess nuclear bombs in the Middle East and only the Jewish State. All other nations there will live perilously under Israel's nuclear shadow.
Ms.Jarret 'happens' to be Jewish. Just so happens, I bet….I"m sure the Iranians will be thrilled…
I'm very skeptical about this. I think it's a way to waste Iran's time and to say, later, that the US "did" everything it could for peace. I hope I'm wrong, but believing in Washington and itd allies is like believing in Al Capone's word.
Most of the discussion seems to assume that the US wants to ultimately resolve its issues with Iran as difficult as that might me. That assumption would be wrong.
The US has no intention of coming to any arrangement or agreement whatsoever. The US just wants regime change. The negotiations are just for appearances, and demonstrate bad faith on the part of the US.
The Zionist masters will quickly put an end to all that blah blah blah when their boy Romney ascends to the throne.