December 12, 2014
Abdur-Rahman Ar-Rashid, the former editor-in-chief of the pan-Arab daily Asharq Al-Awsat, writes in the daily that Iran seeks to be saved from itself, rather than from Arabs or the West. “Iran’s problem is within Iran, not from beyond its borders,” he wrote. “Let’s consider Iran as an example of self-incarceration, a regime that has cornered itself in a box made of political slogans and attitudes. It secluded itself and its leadership while the world around it changed. [Foreign Minister Mohammad-Javad] Zarif says the world now wants to reach an understanding with Iran based on logic, dialogue and respect. The fact is the world was always willing to reason with Iran in such a way. It was the Iranian regime that rejected that approach.”