Tehran feels alone in region - Haaretz

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Wed., November 28, 2007 Kislev 18, 5768

Israel Time: 02:17 (EST+7)

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Tehran feels alone in region

By Yoav Stern

Iran has embarked on a diplomatic offensive in the Arab world in an effort to alleviate its growing concerns that it is being isolated internationally, as a result of the Annapolis summit, and that it may be attacked for its recalcitrance on its nuclear program.

Several days ago, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia and Bashar Assad of Syria, and yesterday, Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki visited Kuwait, where he described the Maryland meeting summit as "benefiting only the Zionist regime."

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Iran's concerns are also being expressed in articles in its press and on websites. According to Tabnak, the website of General Mohsen Rezai, former commander of the Revolutionary Guard, an article appeared yesterday saying that Annapolis aims to destroy the strategic alliance with Syria, Tehran's closest ally. "Separating Iran and Syria is the first shot of Annapolis," according to the article.

Another website, Asri Iran, warned Arab states against military cooperation with the United States. In an article published Sunday, the possibility of a regional war against Iran was discussed. According to its authors, if the Arab states neighboring Iran allow the U.S. to use their airspace, or bases in their territory, for an attack against Iran, this will make them legitimate targets for Iranian counter-strikes.

"This is similar to a situation in which there is a war between Israel and Arab states, in which Iran allows its territory to be used for an attack against the latter," the authors of the article state.

Some experts on Iran believe that Tehran is surprised to find that just over a year after the Second Lebanon War, it may find itself isolated by the Arab world, including Syria.

"They thought that after the Second Lebanon War, Iran's strategic position in the region would be changed, and that the Arab states would now give it more consideration. The fact that so many Arab states are participating in the conference, including Syria, means that the results of the war did not help [Iran] so much," says Meir Javedanfar, director of the Middle East Economic and Political Analysis Company.

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