Report: ‘Master strategist’ Khamenei used election to pacify West, advance nuclear program

Special to WorldTribune.com

WASHINGTON — Iran’s presidential elections have persuaded the West
into giving Teheran more time to develop its nuclear weapons program, a
report said.

The Gatestone Institute asserted that Iranian supreme leader Ali
Khamenei used the June 14 elections to ease Western pressure on Teheran’s
nuclear program.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Iranian president-elect Hassan Rowhani meet on June 16.  /PressTV
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Iranian president-elect Hassan Rowhani meet on June 16. /PressTV

In a report, Gatestone said Khamenei would use the extra time to complete Iran’s nuclear project.

“Khamenei has again proven what a great master strategist he is,” the report, titled “And the Winner Is…Iran’s Nuclear Program,” said. “He has
succeeded in pacifying the West and his own people, thus buying the time his scientists need to complete his nuclear project.”

Author Harold Rhode said the election of Hassan Rowhani encouraged the West, including the United States, and the presidential-elect would be given
an unspecified amount of time to draft proposals to resolve the uranium
enrichment crisis. Rhode, a former Iranian specialist for the U.S. Defense
Department, said Rowhani was selected by Khamenei to ensure Iranian nuclear
weapons development.

“Moreover, the West could lull itself into believing that since Rowhani
is a ‘moderate,’ maybe he is someone we can deal with,” the report said.
“The election result, therefore is huge win for Khamenei and his clique, and
a defeat for the West, Israel, and the Iranian people.”

The report disputed assertions in the West and Israel that the Iranian
elections were fair and free. Gatestone pointed out that Khamenei selected
eight out of 686 potential candidates.

“All [eight] of them clearly supported Khamanei’s continued rule, which
so many of the Iranian people, including senior clerics, loathe,” the report
said. “So the choice for Iranian voters was not between candidates with
widely differing views.”

The report said Rowhani would have no authority to negotiate
reconciliation with the West. The new president was termed a “figurehead”
who would execute Khamenei’s orders.

“By pinning our hopes on President Rowhani, and parsing his every word,
we will find ways countless to give him time to ‘consolidate his power,’ as
if he really has power, while we will be less demanding of Iran as it races
to cross the nuclear threshold,” the report said.

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