Zafar Bangash
While important, too much focus on the minute details of the deal between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States misses a crucial point. The world has undergone a siesmic change because of Iran’s convincing victory over the combined military might of the US and Israel.
It is easy to miss the larger picture because of rapidly changing events. In 100 days, Islamic Iran has washed away the shame of 150 years of Muslim humiliation. It had started with the Ottoman Turks’ defeat and retreat from the Balkans in 1878.
Millions of Muslims were left at the non-existent mercies of the Christian fascists. The genocide of Bosniaks at the hands of the Serbs from 1992 to 1995, capped by the Srebrinica massacre of July 1995, perpetrated while the Dutch “peacekeeping forces” looked on, proved yet again the west’s extreme hatred of Muslims and the latter’s impotence to prevent it.
The illegal and unprovoked US-zionist war on Iran was merely a continuation of this long policy of anti-Muslim bigotry. According to conventional wisdom, Iran should have collapsed quickly.
It didn’t. Instead, through valiant resistance, Iran dislodged the US from its self-proclaimed status as the world’s indispensable superpower.
Islamic Iran did not achieve this due to the preponderance of weapons. Its military hardware is no match for the lethal arsenals the US and zionist Israel possess.
Iran’s achievement is the result of their leaders and people’s faith in Allah and the meticulous planning of their military commanders. Their spirit of sacrifice also played a major role in securing victory over the forces of evil and darkness.
While the US and Israel bombed schools, universities, bridges, pharmaceutical factories, apartment buildings and water treatment plants, the latter described even by the New York Times a war crime, Iran did not retaliate in kind. It could easily have reduced Tel Aviv to rubble. Instead, it hit only military targets, adhering to the Islamic standards of warfare seldom seen elsewhere.
Iran’s victory is now acknowledged even by right-wing American pundits. Nobody believes Trump’s messages on his Truth Social platform claiming US victory.
The threat to use force often has greater effect than if it is actually deployed. In the past if the leader of a country was not sufficiently subservient to American interests, he would be overthrown by his own military before the US naval armada left its home port.
Only four years ago, Imran Khan was unceremoniously removed from office by Pakistan’s thuggish generals. This was on the orders of a third-ranking US state department official. Pakistan’s most popular leader languishes in solitary confinement in a stinking prison cell today.
Iran’s valiant stand has altered the global equation and landscape. It not only defended itself against overwhelming force but also inflicted massive damage on US military bases in the region. Zionist Israel’s military has also been seriously degraded together with shattering its myth of invincibility.
In the past, attacking US military bases was considered a great folly. It immediately incurred American wrath. Tehran’s bold steps have exposed the limits of US military power.
Almost all US bases, built at the cost of billions of dollars, true, paid for by host Arab countries, have been severely damaged. There is little prospect of these being rebuilt because they can be destroyed again in any future conflict.
Even the Arabian regimes are no longer keen to have them on their soil. If the Americans cannot defend their own military bases, how can they protect the Arabian regimes?
They have found that the US is not reliable. Further, the trillions of dollars they spent as protection money did not buy them security.
This has caused a major shift in their thinking. The Arabian dictators are making peace with Iran which is now recognized as the undisputed regional power.
One by one, they are reaching out to Tehran. Even the Emiratis are trying to mend fences. Considering their deep ties to the zionists, this is quite a change.
The UAE has concluded that paying Iran is a better insurance policy against attacks than paying trillions to the US. To attract investments, they need a safe environment. Only Iran can guarantee that.
Qatar has also reached out to Iran. Together with Oman, Doha has been the least hostile to Tehran among all GCC countries. It is even facilitating, together with Pakistan, indirect talks between Iran and the US.
There are reports that Qatar has or will release $12 billion as part of the US-Iran deal. It holds $24 billion of Iran’s frozen assets. This will allow Trump to claim that the US did not pay directly to Iran under the deal.
The US has illegally frozen more than $120 billion of Iran’s assets. Trump admitted as much and said this money will have to be returned to Iran. Similarly, a $300 billion investment fund will be set to rebuild Iran’s damaged infrastructure.
The Arabian regimes have denied paying billions of dollars to Iran but flight tracking data showed a Boeing 737-7JZ BBJ, registration number A6-RJF and operated as an Emirati private aircraft, flew from Abu Dhabi to Tehran’s Mehrabad Airport on June 8. According to reports, it was carrying $3 billion of Iranian funds. The total amount committed by the UAE to Iran is between $10 billion and $20 billion.
The funds transfer story was first reported by Reuters and then picked up by other media outlets. An Emirati official, asked to comment on the transfer, told Reuters the country was trying to ease tensions and foster peace.
The UAE also hosted members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) for a meeting with Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE’s national security adviser and deputy ruler of Abu Dhabi. The Iranian visitors stayed at the private villa of the Emirati intelligence chief.
What has forced the Arabian dictators to temper their hostility toward Islamic Iran? It is not their new-found love for Tehran nor its financial or economic clout. Iran has suffered nearly 50 years of sanctions, military threats and sabotage including assassination of its top leaders. Despite all these setbacks, Islamic Iran has emerged stronger.
Its military power and the ability to inflict pain on its enemies have finally convinced the Arabian rulers that it is time to make peace with Tehran. They cannot change geography. Their economic well-being depends on Iran’s goodwill and the Strait of Hormuz remaining open.
Magnanimously, the Iranian leadership has extended a hand of friendship to its western neighbours. Tehran has always stated that security of the region should be the collective responsibility of neighbouring countries. Outside powers have no business being there.
This is now becoming a reality. The US is on the verge of fleeing the region. Iran will determine who enters or exits the Persian Gulf.
Control of the strait gives Iran enormous leverage that it did not enjoy before. It now has the global economy in its grip. The days of US gunboat diplomacy are over.
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