20 March 2009
Obama Calls for New Beginning in U.S.-Iranian Relations
Holiday video message latest step in White House effort to engage Tehran
Washington – In a special video message to the people of Iran, President Obama called for a “new day” in relations between Washington and Tehran and a future rooted in honest engagement and mutual respect.
“I want you, the people and leaders of Iran, to understand the future that we seek,” Obama said in the March 20 message marking Nowruz, the traditional Persian new year holiday. “It’s a future with renewed exchanges among our people and greater opportunities for partnership and commerce. It’s a future where the old divisions are overcome, where you and all of your neighbors and the wider world can live in greater security and greater peace.”
Nowruz is a time of spring and new beginnings, Obama said, recognizing the many contributions of Persian culture to the world through the centuries. “Within these celebrations lies the promise of a new day, the promise of opportunity for our children, security for our families, progress for our communities, and peace between nations. Those are shared hopes, those are common dreams.”
Reversing nearly 30 years of strained U.S.-Iranian relations is among Obama’s top foreign policy priorities. Immediately upon taking office, he ordered a comprehensive review of U.S. policy toward Iran. (See “Analysis: Will Iran Accept America’s “Open Hand”?.”)
“The United States wants the Islamic Republic of Iran to take its rightful place in the community of nations. You have that right — but it comes with real responsibilities,” Obama said. “That place cannot be reached through terror or arms, but rather through peaceful actions that demonstrate the true greatness of the Iranian people and civilization. And the measure of that greatness is not the capacity to destroy, it is your demonstrated ability to build and create.”
While the governments of Switzerland and Pakistan long have served as official intermediaries between the countries, U.S. and Iranian envoys have cooperated in efforts to stabilize Afghanistan and more recently have held discussions on the future of Iraq. But many American analysts and former policymakers agree that building on these limited contacts will prove a daunting challenge to the new administration.
“I know that this won’t be reached easily. There are those who insist that we be defined by our differences,” Obama said.
While the White House’s policy review remains under way, U.S. and Iranian diplomats will be attending two high-profile international conferences in Moscow and The Hague this month focused on the shared challenge of bringing stability and development to Afghanistan and its border with Pakistan. While the two delegations have not planned any official meetings, State Department spokesman Robert Wood did not rule out the possibility that U.S. and Iranian officials could talk informally on the sidelines of the events. (See “Stabilizing Afghanistan Common Challenge for America and Iran.”)
“With the coming of a new season, we’re reminded of this precious humanity that we all share,” Obama said. “And we can once again call upon this spirit as we seek the promise of a new beginning.”
Obama’s Nowruz video message is available on the White House Web site.
