The real deal on Iran post 9/11

Most people were shocked that Bush labelled Iran as one of the so-called "axis of evil" countries in his post 9/11 address. Did he not understand that in fighting the Taliban that the Americans could have no better ally than the Iranians? Anyhow, the below is a good read:


Excerpts:

In the days after 9/11, Iranian president Mohammad Khatami condemned the terrorist attack and reached out to the West to fight terrorism together.

Too bad we ignored him. We'd be safer today if we hadn't.

Khatami was a moderate reformer, a popular democratically elected president who had been struggling to limit the power of Iran's reactionary religious leaders, and to open up a dialogue between the West and the Muslim world.

You'd think the West would love a guy like that. But the Bush administration was determined to treat 9/11 as a battle in the "clash of civilizations" — a clash that Khatami was trying to steer the world away from.

So, despite an outpouring of sympathy from Iranians over 9/11 — including a moment of silence at an Iranian soccer match — Washington declared Iran part of the "axis of evil" and dragged the West into a "war on terror" that involved invading Muslim countries. (Source: Toronto Star, Sept 10/06, Linda McQuaig)