Pepe Escobar : Mr. Araghchi goes to Russia
From now on, it’s clear that no settlement will be possible – and realistic – without Russian influence.
Talk about an entrance pregnant with meaning.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi engaged on a high-stakes diplomacy tour to Islamabad, Muscat and St. Petersburg aboard flight “Minab 168” on Meraj Airlines.
In memory, of course, of the 168 schoolgirls from Minab killed by the Empire of Chaos, Lies, Plunder and Piracy.
Before he set out on his voyage, Araghchi went straight to the point:
“It had been some time since meetings with Russia had taken place. We use the current opportunity to hold consultations with our Russian friends regarding developments related to the war. This coordination will be important.”
Araghchi explained the importance of reviewing negotiations in Pakistan, and “under what conditions negotiations could continue.” Conversations in Oman “will lead to greater expansion in relations with neighbors, especially in the southern regions of the Persian Gulf.”
On the Strait of Hormuz, “consultations with Oman were also necessary…We share many common views with Oman, and it was agreed that discussions would continue at the expert level.”
Araghchi in St. Petersburg did not only meet his counterpart, Grandmaster Sergey Lavrov, as protocol would have it. Himself and his mini-delegation were personally received by President Putin.
With a supremely elegant, sharp as a dagger delivery, Putin summarized the whole New Game generated by the war on Iran.
Three absolutely key points:
1.Respect for the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei: “I would like to note at the beginning of the conversation that last week I received a message from the Supreme Leader of Iran. I would like to ask you to convey my most sincere words of gratitude for this and to confirm that Russia, just like Iran, intends to continue our strategic relations. Please convey to the Supreme Leader words of gratitude for this message and wishes of the best, health, and well-being.
2.Iran’s fight is all about independence and sovereignty: “We see how courageously and heroically the people of Iran are fighting for their independence and sovereignty. Of course, we very much hope that, relying on this courage and striving for independence, the Iranian people, under the leadership of their new Leader, will overcome this difficult period of trials and see peace prevail.”
3.Russia is all in: “For our part, we will do everything that serves your interests and the interests of all peoples of the region to ensure that this peace is achieved as soon as possible. You know our position well.”.
Araghchi for his part confirmed Iran and Russia are engaged on a “strategic partnership at the highest level.” Moreover, “it has also been proven to everyone that Iran has friends and allies like the Russian Federation, who in difficult moments stand by Iran. We are grateful to you for your strong and firm positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
To say that the Empire of Piracy will have a lot to mull over is of course the understatement of the century.
Turning the game around
Araghchi’s Grand Tour turned the game around in several ways.
To start with, Iran passed a series of sharp notes to the Pakistani mediators, which, in theory, should reach the Americans.
The key issues:
Emphasis on the 10 points and full commitment to all of them.
Iran is ready only for a rational and fair negotiation.
The U.S. has no right to set red lines.
Iran will not surrender to U.S. excesses (and that includes no naval blockade).
Pakistan must remain absolutely neutral.
But that was only the start. Tehran subsequently handed over to the Pakistani mediators a three-stage plan for anything happening from now on.
1.The first stage of negotiations must be focused on ending the war – for good – and obtaining serious guarantees, as in approved by the UN Security Council.
2.The second stage should address the management of the Strait of Hormuz after the end of the war.
3.Only on the third stage the Iranian nuclear dossier should be addressed.
What this means is that from now on Tehran will no longer negotiate over the nuclear program – at all. What matters is ending the war; sanctions relief; the modalities of compensation; and lifting the U.S. naval blockade.
The nuclear dossier “could be addressed later in a separate agreement” – and only after the war has ended (italics mine).
Note the frontal clash with the Empire of Piracy – as Trump insists the nuclear dossier is “the only point that really mattered.”
Iran has now removed it from the chessboard.
Trump is adamant: no end to the war without a nuclear deal.
Tehran now rules no nuclear discussion until the war ends.
Who could possibly bridge this gap?
Enter Russia.
And that must have certainly been discussed in St. Petersburg by the “strategic partnership at the highest level.” Whether Trump will be willing to listen to Putin is a whole new ball game.
The previous negotiation model is dead
Now once again to who really has the cards. Tehran played a crucial move. Enough of following the Empire of Piracy’s twisted agenda. The previous negotiation model is dead.
What matters now is supremely strategic – and capitalizing on the de facto strategic defeat Iran has inflicted on the Americans.
So no more strategic concessions ad infinitum, conditioned by the proverbial imperial “maximum pressure”. No more ersatz negotiations under siege.
That’s the Persian verdict on the American way of “diplomacy” – which is no more than a tool dissolved in the fire of outright coercion and all sorts of pressure. Now it’s the battlefield that will dictate terms – as well as new geoeconomic realities.
No wonder Team Trump 2.0 is apoplectic.
Especially because Moscow now is a frontal player with skin in the game. The architecture of Araghchi’s travels was a killer.
From now on, it’s clear that no settlement will be possible – and realistic – without Russian influence.
Barbarians underestimate the Persians at their own peril. What we are watching now is diplomacy rearranged in a new Lego environment (pun intended). The Empire of Piracy, whatever its destructive designs, is now being forced to deal with the powerful Iran that’s emerging from this war.
The previous one is no more.