Germany and Iran

German Islamism expert Matthias Kuentzel, in the May 15 issue of the Wall Street Journal, reported on a trip to Berlin last April by a senior Iranian foreign ministry official that neither the media nor the German government had mentioned. He describes the tension between German Chancellor Angela Merkel's calls for tougher sanctions on Iran and the position of the German foreign policy establishment, which wants accommodation or even a 'strategic partnership' with Iran.

One of those calling for a better relationship with Iran is Christoph Bertram, a very senior and respected foreign policy expert in Germany. Another is Kinan Jaeger, a professor at the University of Bonn. Kuentzel quotes Jaeger as writing that "[a]nyone who is capable of bringing Iran to its side is not only 'set for life' as far as energy logistics are concerned, but could also face the U.S. in a different way." Just what this 'different way' might be should give us pause for reflection.

During the latest exchange between Obama and Bush over whether we should talk to leaders like Iranian President Ahmedinejad, neither mentioned that the Europeans - with Germany as a leader - have been negotiating with the Iranians for years now. U.S. policy supported those talks. Even the EU has admitted it got absolutely nothing for its efforts (although that doesn't ever seem to them to suggest that maybe it's not worth doing). The Iranian negotiator disagreed; according to him, the negotiations gave the Iranians valuable time to develop nuclear weapons.

I think we should take very seriously what the German foreign policy experts are saying. If Iran becomes a nuclear power, it could hurt our relations with Europe as well as with the Middle East.