Mossadegh, Iran hot topics of US Presidential debate: Sander for, Hillary against, ties with Iran
Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton clashed again over relations with Iran in the recent Democratic presidential debate at the University of Wisconsin. While Hillary defended Israel and warned against normalizing ties with Iran, Sanders (himself of Jewish faith) defended Obama's path to normalizing relations with once adversaries like Cuba and Iran, and reminded her of past blunders such as the CIA-staged coup against Iran's democratic leader.
Hillary harshly criticized Sanders: "Senator Sanders, .. Putting Iranian troops right on the border of the Golan right next to Israel would be a nonstarter for me. Trying to get Iran and Saudi Arabia to work together, as he has suggested in the past, is equally a nonstarter."
Sanders, however, pointed out to Clinton's poor judgment in authorizing Bush's invasion of Iraq, her close ties with conservative, pro-Israeli politician Henry Kissinger, and her neglect of blunders in US foreign policy: "Nobody [may] know who Mossadegh was, but back in 1953, Mossadegh, the Democratically elected Prime Minister of Iran was overthrown by British and US interests because he threatened the oil interest of British oil... Count me in as somebody who will not be listening to [likes of] Henry Kissinger"
Shortly after the debate, the Washington, DC based National Iranian American Council (NIAC) issued the following statement regarding comments by Clinton: "Hillary Clinton is wrong to say that we should not promise or even look towards normalizing relations with Iran because of our problem’s with Iranian activities. As someone who was involved in the very nascent stages of the negotiations with Iran to secure the nuclear deal that she supports, Clinton should know that engagement and diplomatic relations are the best tool to achieve our national security interests. Further engagement, with an eye towards eventually formalizing those diplomatic relations, is the best way to resolve the challenges that she outlines regarding Iran. .. Distinguishing herself from Bernie Sanders in this manner only evokes her criticisms in 2007 of then presidential-candidate Barack Obama of being naive for saying he would pursue direct negotiations with Iran. As the historic nuclear deal that prevented a war and prevented the spread of nuclear weapons demonstrates, Obama was far from naive then and pushing for the eventual normalization of relations with Iran is not naive now."
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