dagblog - Comments for "Rouhani Declines Opportunity to Meet Obama--Too Complicated"

excerpt: Mr. Netanyahu,

artappraiser — Thu, 26 Sep 2013 02:52:34 +0000

In reply to For President of Iran, Time

excerpt:

Mr. Netanyahu, rattled by Mr. Obama’s desire to engage Iran, has warned that Mr. Rouhani, with his professorial demeanor and moderate tone, is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Yet Iran’s hard-liners, Mr. Sadjadpour said, “probably view him as sheep in wolf’s clothing.”

The complex political crosscurrents were on display in the Iranian news media’s coverage of Mr. Rouhani’s day at the United Nations. A reformist newspaper, Shargh, published pictures of Mr. Rouhani and Mr. Obama during their speeches, with the headline “Perhaps Another Time” — a reflection of the letdown among average Iranians about the missed opportunity for a handshake.

But another paper, Kayhan, which is close to the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, expressed horror over the possibility that “the clean hand of our president would for moments be in the bloody clench” of Mr. Obama.

Advisers and analysts close to the government in Tehran said that after weeks of conciliatory statements and gestures by Mr. Rouhani, the excitement had gotten out of hand.

“We need to gain something from the Americans, before we pose and smile with them,” said Hamid-Reza Taraghi, an official who is one of the few trusted to interpret the speeches of Ayatollah Khamenei. “Of course, Mr. Rouhani also needed to convince some at home that he is not making any wild moves.”

Mr. Rouhani himself suggested that a meeting would have been premature and might actually have jeopardized the longer-term goal of striking an agreement on the nuclear program. Speaking to editors and columnists in New York on Wednesday, he said, “I believe we did not have enough time to make it happen.”

“If we do not take our first steps carefully,” he said, “we may not at the very least be able to obtain mutual goals that are in our minds.”

White House officials, though deflated, said Mr. Rouhani’s decision showed he is an astute political player who knows how to calm hard-liners at home while charming audiences abroad. Those are skills they say he will need to navigate the treacherous waters of Iranian politics.

“The issue of the relationship between the United States and Iran is incredibly controversial within Iran,” said a senior administration official. “For them it was just too difficult to move forward with that type of encounter at the presidential level, at this juncture.”

For President of Iran, Time

artappraiser — Thu, 26 Sep 2013 02:33:49 +0000

In reply to Rouhani Declines Opportunity to Meet Obama--Too Complicated

For President of Iran, Time Is Not Yet Right to Meet Obama
By Mark Landler and Thomas Erdbrink, New York Times, Sept. 24, 2013, 9:04 PM ET

The decision by the Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani, not to meet President Obama reflects the razor’s edge he walks at home, between skeptical hard-liners and citizens who want to end Iran’s isolation.

Used the current headline and lede from the top of the Times' home page. When you follow the link you currently get this different headline on the page of the article itself:

Iran’s Leader, Denouncing Holocaust, Stirs Dispute

For us junkies in the realm

Bruce Levine — Wed, 25 Sep 2013 11:49:52 +0000

In reply to Natl Public Radio reported

For us junkies in the realm of the international/political/newsie milieu, the annual meeting at the UNGA is like our Oscar Awards ceremony!

By the way did you see what that French dude was wearing??? I would never!

Natl Public Radio reported

Donal — Wed, 25 Sep 2013 02:57:38 +0000

In reply to Rouhani Declines Opportunity to Meet Obama--Too Complicated

Natl Public Radio reported that one reason Rouhani could not attend the same luncheon as Obama - and shake hands - was because alcohol was being served. For some reason as I was listening to that, I had this image of Obama and Rouhani singing in the restroom, as in Ally McBeal.

This has nothing to do with

Bruce Levine — Wed, 25 Sep 2013 00:15:07 +0000

In reply to Rouhani Declines Opportunity to Meet Obama--Too Complicated

This has nothing to do with the big picture, of course. But if we're looking to read tea leaves, this is one too, no?