Britain, Iran and Consequences

Weeks after the Iranian government illegally abducted and subsequently released 15 members of the Royal Navy, troubling news keeps trickling out of Great Britain. The servicemen, upon arriving on British shores and after having received candy, new suits and a beneficent “pardon” from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, were more than eager to market their survival stories to the highest bidder. To be frank, the whole episode was a British embarrassment from beginning to end. Tory Party member Liam Niall echoed the concerns of many when he asked rhetorically, “Does no one feel responsible for the shame this episode has brought upon Britain at the hands of the pariah state if Iran?” The British government, the soldiers involved and the media failed in their duty to provide a united front against an outright act of war by one sovereign nation against another. Contrary to Iran’s far-fetched allegations that the British troops had wandered into Iranian territory, GPS technology has since proven that the servicemen were patrolling Iraqi waters, principally to guard against foreign, namely Iranian, meddling in Iraq. Further, the British presence in the Iraqi waters was sanctioned by the Iraqi government itself and the United Nations.

In the end, the hostages were released, but at what cost? Under duress, they were paraded on Iranian television, made false confessions and apologized to the Iranian people for their “indiscretion.” Iran came out of the fiasco looking stronger and more audacious than ever. The government of Iran won the PR war hands down by appearing, at the same time, strong and magnanimous before the Iranian people; magnanimous for having released those it could have executed for “trespassing” and strong because it proved capable of scooping up the UK soldiers in the first place. But the event also emboldened Iran because Great Britain, unquestionably the most powerful nation fighting the war on terror after the United States, came across as feckless and timid. If the episode was a test to determine to what extent an Islamo-fascist regime could have its way with a Western power, Iran passed with flying colors. The sad spectacle didn’t end with the soldier’s release. In a remarkable display of British ineptitude and illusion following the release of the servicemen, the Rev. Tom Burns, Bishop for the Royal Navy said, “Over the past two weeks, there has been a unity of purpose between Britain and Iran whereby everyone has sought justice and forgiveness.” What!? Britain was played by Iran like a Stradivarius, with the world stage serving as Carnegie Hall. Just where, may I ask, was this noble quest for “justice” when Iran illegally kidnapped foreign soldiers and proceeded to lie to the world about the entire circumstance? Judging by the stunning display of Iranian chutzpah, it’s almost as if they anticipated that Britain wouldn’t push hard on the matter. Would Great Britain under Churchill or Thatcher have kowtowed and dithered before Iranian threats and intimidation tactics as the present government has done? I doubt it.

But let us not forget another European embarrassment that took place in 2004. After terrorists bombed a series of metros, Spaniards angrily tossed out an able government that clearly grasped what Ethics and Public Policy Center’s Joseph Loconte has called the “adult appreciation for the moral complexities of the post 9/11 world.” In pursuance with the demands of al-Qaida, voters meted out their vengeance on Aznar’s government in 2004, replacing it with the carnival-like government of Zapatero. If al-Qaida can claim any trophies since the commencement of the war on terror, and there are probably very few, its most illustrious would be what’s left of Spain’s national pride. My fear however is that more people and nations in the Western world are inching toward the ignoble status of terrorist-whipped Spain. Do we really have the will to fight this war to the end? There are those who accept Loconte's premise and there are those who willfully turn a blind eye to it. Britain has been with us throughout the war effort, despite terrorist attacks in London and causalities in Iraq and Afghanistan and, unfortunately, despite dwindling public support. It is precisely because of Britain’s indispensability in the war and her close ties to the US that makes the hostage debacle so disappointing from the American point of view. Failing to seize the opportunity to project its power on a regime as dangerous, dellusional and provocative as Iran was an incredible opportunity lost, not just for Britain but for the Western world in general. It will be difficult for Britain to make up for this blunder.

And speaking of the “war on terror,” the British government recently announced that it will no longer use those exact words to describe the war effort. Labor secretary Hilary Benn explains the rationale, “We can’t win by military means alone.” Ah, right... It may seem insignificant, but this move is yet another concession, albeit more subtle, to our enemies and a dangerous step backward to a perilous pre-9/11 mentality.