Does Iran have good reason to support militancy abroad?

[shaykh]

So Rouhani's budget report has made some Iranians very angry...the price of basic goods have gone up, petrol etc...especially with the lifting of sanctions Iranians were expecting their lives to get better...

Now the other part of that budget report was just how much funding was going into the likes of Syria...something which has frustrated Iranians not just financially but the loss of life for wars that aren't theirs too...

On the other hand some would argue that being surrounded by Sunni states and Israel it is imperative for Iran to support Assad, the Houthis, Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah among others...

 

[JaDed]

In that logic Americans should be extremely frustrated,maybe If Iran can show them the value of "freedom wars" and ease of doing business in Syria if they win,idealism is foolish would be good for the students to understand that.

 

[Markhor]

The sheer glee and faux concern for "the Iranian people" that anti-Iranian commentators in the west are having about these Iran protests is so disingenuous. Firstly, although there's been tragic reports of a dozen deaths, at least Iran has some semblance of a democracy and civil society. We all saw what happened in Bahrain, and nobody would dare attempt equivalent protests in Saudi Arabia or other Gulf autocracies.

Its very convenient that Western media are reporting those slogans about sending money to Gaza and Lebanon as if that's the root of Iran's financial problems. They are protecting their security interests like anyone other sovereign nation would - Bush put two wars on a credit card so I don't think the Republicans are best placed to talk about Iran's misplaced spending priorities. If Assad fell then Iran would have been left extremely isolated in a region where many of their neighbours have tried to undermine them for years.

Saudi sponsored ideology has caused the deaths of far more around the world than Iran. Frankly, there's something to be said for Iran giving the Saudis a bloody nose in Yemen - all that money, firepower and range of international allies and the Saudis still can't defeat a bunch of Houthis.

That's not the root of their financial problems - the fact is after decades of international isolation and sanctions, you are obviously going to have a weakened economy. Foreign investment hasn't been flooding in after the nuclear deal and sanction relief like Iranians hoped. The imbecile in the White House and the neocon hawks in his ear are viciously anti-Iranian and are trying to undermine the deal which hasn't helped.

That's not to say these protests are without merit. The earthquake last year and the ease of which government housing in the west collapsed highlighted the corruption in the construction sector. Unemployment is at 12%, some are complaining about unpaid wages and the banking sector is facing difficulties - obviously some peoples' patience will run out.

But some of it is politically motivated - why is Mashhad suddenly such a hub of protest ? Is it coincidental that its the home of Rouhani's opponent, Ebrahim Raisi, at the last election ?

 

[Markhor]

In that logic Americans should be extremely frustrated,maybe If Iran can show them the value of "freedom wars" and ease of doing business in Syria if they win,idealism is foolish would be good for the students to understand that.

I can completely understand where some of these Iranian hardliners are coming from. You spend all your life denouncing the US.

Along comes a President with a reputation for moderation (relative to Iran's conservative religious establishment) who engages in meaningful compromise and dialogue with the West despite significant domestic pressure. He agrees a nuclear deal, allows international inspectors in and significantly reducing uranium enrichment.

And what did Rouhani receive for his troubles ? He sees a spoilt, trust fund baby get elected to the White House - a compulsive liar that's never read one line of the nuclear deal that he continually denounces and wants to tear up with the neocon warmongering jackals like Pence and Mattis cheering him on.

Doesn't that vindicate what the hardliners were saying for decades that you can't trust the US to keep their word ? Why bother negotiating and compromising when this is how the other side behaves ?

 

[shaykh]

The sheer glee and faux concern for "the Iranian people" that anti-Iranian commentators in the west are having about these Iran protests is so disingenuous. Firstly, although there's been tragic reports of a dozen deaths, at least Iran has some semblance of a democracy and civil society. We all saw what happened in Bahrain, and nobody would dare attempt equivalent protests in Saudi Arabia or other Gulf autocracies.

Its very convenient that Western media are reporting those slogans about sending money to Gaza and Lebanon as if that's the root of Iran's financial problems. They are protecting their security interests like anyone other sovereign nation would - Bush put two wars on a credit card so I don't think the Republicans are best placed to talk about Iran's misplaced spending priorities. If Assad fell then Iran would have been left extremely isolated in a region where many of their neighbours have tried to undermine them for years.

Saudi sponsored ideology has caused the deaths of far more around the world than Iran. Frankly, there's something to be said for Iran giving the Saudis a bloody nose in Yemen - all that money, firepower and range of international allies and the Saudis still can't defeat a bunch of Houthis.

That's not the root of their financial problems - the fact is after decades of international isolation and sanctions, you are obviously going to have a weakened economy. Foreign investment hasn't been flooding in after the nuclear deal and sanction relief like Iranians hoped. The imbecile in the White House and the neocon hawks in his ear are viciously anti-Iranian and are trying to undermine the deal which hasn't helped.

That's not to say these protests are without merit. The earthquake last year and the ease of which government housing in the west collapsed highlighted the corruption in the construction sector. Unemployment is at 12%, some are complaining about unpaid wages and the banking sector is facing difficulties - obviously some peoples' patience will run out.

But some of it is politically motivated - why is Mashhad suddenly such a hub of protest ? Is it coincidental that its the home of Rouhani's opponent, Ebrahim Raisi, at the last election ?

For the record i'm just putting this out there cos this is the discussion being had...i certainly feel it's negative too in terms of the nature of the protests...ie they don't seem particularly peaceful...

It's poor form though by the Iranians to simply blame outside forces for what are legitimate concerns...although you may be right about there being politically motivated protests...although the calling of the removal of Khamenei seems like a lot more than it was prior...his opponents who were generally against the nuclear deal I don't think would have done much better...

Spending money on foreign wars isn't the root of Iranian problems but it frustrates a lot of people...Americans too complain about the amount of money and life lost fighting foreign wars...

Who knows the extent of discontent...but I guess the Iranians need to be better at explaining to their populace why it's crucial to spend money in the likes of Yemen and Syria...they have spent $15billion a year on average in Syria...and who knows what the total is if you add Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen...it's evident security is the priority...but that seems lost on some people...

 

[JaDed]

I can completely understand where some of these Iranian hardliners are coming from. You spend all your life denouncing the US.

Along comes a President with a reputation for moderation (relative to Iran's conservative religious establishment) who engages in meaningful compromise and dialogue with the West despite significant domestic pressure. He agrees a nuclear deal, allows international inspectors in and significantly reducing uranium enrichment.

And what did Rouhani receive for his troubles ? He sees a spoilt, trust fund baby get elected to the White House - a compulsive liar that's never read one line of the nuclear deal that he continually denounces and wants to tear up with the neocon warmongering jackals like Pence and Mattis cheering him on.

Doesn't that vindicate what the hardliners were saying for decades that you can't trust the US to keep their word ? Why bother negotiating and compromising when this is how the other side behaves ?

That's how diplomacy works, also the situation was very similar to how Gaddafi opened up Libya on the word of England and France and look where they ended up.

If Rouhani learnt nothing from Libya he deserves what he gets,the issue I have here is with the students who think Iran probably the only majority Shia country around doesn't do anything to influence it won't survive against countries with unlimited cash supply.

Iran needs to revisit why the Islamic revolution happened .