Counter View: A Clarification On Iran's Strategic Path And Historical Resolve

NDTV

12 hours ago

The recently published article "Snapback to Reality: On Iran's 45-Year Slog to Nowhere" presents a perspective that, while rhetorically polished, fundamentally misrepresents Iran's history, identity, and strategic choices. The Islamic Republic of Iran welcomes open discussion and diverse opinions. But narratives built on selective memory, historical erasure, and one-sided judgment do not advance peace or understanding-they reinforce entrenched injustice. The author alleges that Iran's so-called misguided policies and what he describes as "Entrenched Animosity" toward the United States and Israel are the root causes of its challenges. He claims that these policies have brought Iran into a state of crisis and isolation.
According to the author, Iran must abandon its confrontational policies and transform into a "normal" actor on the international stage; otherwise, he warns, a bleak future awaits the country. He further asserts that the United States and its Western allies are prepared to invest in Iran and facilitate its transformation into a prosperous and developed nation-provided that Iran relinquishes its nuclear capabilities.
Accordingly, this Embassy considers it its legitimate right and responsibility, in the interest of enlightening public opinion, to provide the following clarifications:
1. Iran's Revolution: A Demand for Dignity, Not Just Defiance
The 1979 Islamic Revolution was not born out of blind hatred or ideological stubbornness. It was the collective awakening of a nation long subjected to foreign domination, coups, imposed monarchies, and the plundering of national wealth. The slogans heard then-and now-reflect a deep historical memory. They are not simply about America or Israel Per Se, but about resisting colonial arrogance, military aggression, and decades of betrayal.
Unlike what the article suggests, Iran does not define itself by enmity. It defines itself by independence, sovereignty, and the pursuit of justice in a region scarred by wars, occupations, and externally backed dictatorships. The question is not why Iran resists, but why others feel entitled to demand its submission.
2. On the JCPOA and Western Commitments
Iran negotiated and upheld the JCPOA-a deal verified by the International Atomic Energy Agency as fully implemented. It was the United States, under the Trump administration, that unilaterally withdrew and re-imposed sanctions without cause. Suggesting that Iran retaliated by enriching uranium ignores the timeline and the facts. Iran acted within the framework of the deal, and under the mechanisms allowed by it.
Today, Iran remains open to balanced, verifiable, and respectful negotiations-but not to intimidation disguised as diplomacy. The "snapback" mechanism, now being brandished as a threat, is an instrument that was only designed to be used in case of non-compliance. Iran's patience and repeated gestures of goodwill, despite being attacked by Israel and economically strangled by illegal sanctions, are evidence of commitment to peaceful resolution.
3. The Real Choice: Not Capitulation, But Balance
The article frames Iran's future as a binary between "stubbornness or survival." But realpolitik has never been that simple. Iran is not demanding war. It is demanding fairness. If the West truly wants reconciliation, it must begin by acknowledging its role in the decades of distrust, ending collective punishment through sanctions, and ceasing to judge Iran through the lens of outdated Cold War ideology.
4. Iran's Regional Role: A Stabilising Force, Not a Spoiler
While Iran is criticised for supporting allies in the region, few ask why such alliances exist. Iran's support for movements in Lebanon, Palestine, Iraq, or Yemen is not imperial ambition-it is resistance against occupation, extremism, and Western-backed militarism. At every turn, Iran has called for dialogue, regional security cooperation, and a nuclear-free Middle East - a call still ignored by those shielding Israel's undeclared arsenal.
If Israel strikes Iranian scientists and sovereign facilities with impunity, and then plays the victim when met with pushback, who truly undermines regional peace?
In Closing: A Call for Mutual Respect
Iran always welcomed negotiation, provided to be fair and equal and its rights to be respected and no nation should be expected to trade sovereignty for survival.
Iran holds the wire-not because it seeks to detonate anything-but because it refuses to be silenced. The choice before the US is to treat Iran as what it is: a sovereign, ancient, capable nation seeking its rightful place in the international system-with respect, not with coercion.
Iran doesn't need to be something else. It will remain what it has always been: Iran-independent, proud, and unafraid to choose its own path.