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What did Putin say to Rouhani in a historic phone call?

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  • What did Putin say to Rouhani in a historic phone call?

    What did Putin say to Rouhani in a historic phone call?

    Nahed Hatar


    What did President Putin discuss with his Iranian counterpart
    President Hassan Rouhani during the phone call that was held between
    them shortly after agreeing to extend Iran's nuclear talks in Vienna?
    Almost certainly, this was the most important event.

    According to the Kremlin statement, though it did not provide
    sufficient details about the phone conversation, the two presidents
    discussed the "substantial progress" in the last round of talks in
    Vienna and stressed the necessity of clinching a comprehensive nuclear
    agreement.

    "They also discussed current issues in key areas of bilateral
    cooperation, including the implementation of the joint projects".
    However, "Al-Mayadeen" News TV quoted some "sources", most probably
    Iranians, as saying that Putin assured Rouhani that Russia will not
    allow the nuclear negotiations to continue for a long time, and will
    not also allow removal of the sanctions imposed against Iran to be
    delayed any longer.

    As stated by "Al-Mayadden", Moscow showed readiness to strengthen
    strategic bilateral alliance, including coordination with China to
    break the sanctions imposed against the Islamic Republic. Moreover,
    with reference to President Rouhani's initiative to call his Russian
    counterpart, does this initiative in this sensitive time reflect the
    fact that the Iranian president has a tendency of establishing
    strategic ties or is it merely a diplomatic step to thank Moscow for
    its tireless efforts to save the Vienna negotiations? Perhaps the
    answer to the two aforementioned questions depicts the features of the
    next phase, regionally and internationally.

    Russia is also at present facing Western sanctions which cost the
    Russians, in a few months, more than one hundred billion dollars.
    Definitely, they will not accept to go on with this economic and
    financial attrition. Moscow will thus be in front of two options:
    either accepting a "subordinate" role to the major Western powers
    politically that leads accordingly to losing the strategic
    achievements accomplished during President Putin's era, or heading
    hastily towards building a self-reliant global economic and financial
    system and renouncing the Western one.

    Of course, in the context of this option, Iran will most likely play a
    key role in building a solid trio with Russia and China in the
    framework of the BRICS group of fast-growing, major non-Western
    economies, which include also India, Brazil and South Africa. A
    question remains, why is Iran enjoying this advantage exclusively?
    This comes because it does not only act as an economic value, but also
    as a strategic, military and defense-based one; especially regarding
    its Arab allies in Syria, Lebanon-Hezbollah, and Iraq. It is
    noteworthy that Syria is Russia's old ally, and the Russians consider
    Hezbollah as a regional power and an ally and they are seeking to
    restore their positions in Iraq.

    Possibly, the tendency towards creating strategic alliance with Iran
    is already settled in Russia, for it is, in essence, an expression of
    a strategic need for preserving the Russian growing influence. Yet, is
    this the case in Iran too? It is well known that the current Iranian
    policy is the product of disagreement between two movements: the
    Revolutionary movement led by Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei, and the
    Liberal movement, led by Rouhani. The two movements most prominently
    disagree on files related to the position on Syria and the Iranian
    aids to the Syrians.

    The Revolutionary movement seeks to provide Damascus with further
    multi-format support, while the Liberal movement seeks the opposite.
    Perhaps its aim behind this is not only saving the cost of Syria's
    support, so as to improve the domestic spending, but also courting the
    West to reach an agreement on the nuclear issue, allowing by this the
    lifting of sanctions on Iran and overcoming the economic and financial
    difficulties.

    Doubtless, it has tactical relations with Moscow and it is benefiting
    from them to improve the conditions for reconciliation talks with the
    West. Yet, Russia is facing a complex problem with these two
    movements. The Revolutionary movement is a strategic ally with no
    uncertainty or hesitation in the face of the West, but it disagrees
    with Moscow on issues related to several files, including, for
    example, the position on political Islam, on the regime of the
    Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, and on the authority in
    Ramallah. This comes particularly since Moscow believes that the
    Palestinian authority is its ally and thus it supports its political
    line.

    The dispute over these files would never remain a theoretical or
    collapsible one, but it would be transformed into a political dispute.
    However, the Rouhani liberal movement seems to be in harmony with
    Russia in its way of mastering the world and the era, but it is
    untrustworthy in terms of looking forward to reaching understanding
    with the West on the one hand and in terms of supporting Syria, which
    constitutes the jewel of the Russian crown, on the other hand. At the
    moment, it is a golden international opportunity for Iran to
    reposition itself as part of a Russian-Chinese Alliance that would fix
    the Iranian internal contradiction.

    This re-positioning allows Iran, at the same time, to maintain its
    independence and to preserve its policies regarding the West, as well
    as to solve its economic and financial problems. Hence, are we going
    to witness an internal understanding within the Iranian policy that
    would adopt this approach, or we are going to witness a struggle that
    paralyzes the possibility of taking advantage of the opportunity
    instead?

    I believe that the two parties, Russia and Iran, could gain profound
    insight into the strategic relationship that existed between the
    Soviets and Abdul Nasser's Egypt. It was a strategic relationship,
    despite the ideological differences, and was even at times a political
    one between the two sides. The West does not intend to establish
    peaceful relations and to cooperate with Russia and Iran, but rather
    intends to weaken both of them internally. In actual fact, those who
    do not want to realize this are deluded, and those who do not
    prioritize the bilateral alliance are waiving the principal interests
    of the country and its future.


    Source: Newspapers
    29-11-2014 - 13:18 Last updated 29-11-2014 - 13:18
    http://www.almanar.com.lb/english/adetails.php?eid=183203&cid=31&fromval=1&frid=31&s eccatid`&s1=1

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