Rouhani UN Speech a Significant First Step
Despite opposition from Israel's prime minister, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's speech to the UN General Assembly could push talks forward.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s speech to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Sept. 24, was not a breakthrough, but it was definitely a significant first step in US-Iran relations.
Rouhani's moderate approach characterized his UN address and perhaps had an immediate effect. US President Barack Obama’s instructions to Secretary of State John Kerry to initiate talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif was a promising, albeit tentative outcome. In retrospect, the fact that a chance meeting between the two presidents did not take place may render chances for success of talks more promising. If a chance encounter had taken place it would have raised expectations, perhaps prematurely.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has no such expectations. The prime minister undertook a reckless campaign against Rouhani’s overtures, describing them as “empty charm” and ordered Israel’s delegation to boycott the Rouhani speech, before describing it as “a cynical speech full of hypocrisy.”
Netanyahu’s onslaught on Rouhani’s speech is intended to interrupt any consequential talks that Kerry might have with his Iranian counterpart, especially during the P5+1 meeting on Sept. 26.
