Iran’s kumbaya video: let’s cut the deal and turn to ‘existential battle’ against extremists

On Friday Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif put out a kumbaya-spirited video, saying that Iran welcomes the deal as an alternative to military solutions to disagreements, and it’s time for the world to fight the “existential battle” against extremism, “the hooded men who are ravaging the cradle of civilization.”

The menace we’re facing – and I say we, because no one is spared – is embodied by the hooded men who are ravaging the cradle of civilization. To deal with this new challenge new approaches are badly needed. Iran has long been at the forefront in the fight against extremism

John Kerry says there are important issues to resolve:

We’ve made genuine progress in last few days, but we’re not where we need to be on several difficult issues.

Zarif calls out the neoconservatives in the message, titled: “Iran’s Message: Our Counterparts Must Choose Between Agreement and Coercion”

Some stubbornly believe that military and economic coercion can ensure submission. They still insist on spending other people’s money or sacrificing other people’s children for their own delusional designs.

Other people’s children: that is targeted right at the neocons. Of course Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has put out his own cartoon video, saying Iran is the same as ISIS. Yesterday Netanyahu said the deal gets worse by the day and that it is a “jackpot” for Iran, like the deal with North Korea:

This deal, as far as we can see, comes on almost daily concessions from the P5+1 to growing Iranian demands. Every day, more concessions are made and every day the deal becomes worse and worse. I could say that what we see in Vienna is not a breakthrough, but more like a breakdown, a breakdown of the principles that the P5+1 committed itself to uphold in the Lausanne negotiations.

This deal will pave Iran’s path to a nuclear arsenal.  It will give them a jackpot of hundreds of billions of dollars with which to continue to fund their aggression and terror – aggression in the region, terror throughout the world. It’s something that I think we should work against because when you have such a bad deal that resembles more and more the deal with North Korea, the conclusion is simple. It’s been said before by many leaders and I’ll say it again now: Better no deal than this very bad deal

On twitter, he says it’s worse than the North Korea deal:

This is a bad deal. In my opinion it’s worse than the deal that led to a nuclear arsenal in North Korea.

Laura Rozen of Al Monitor says that the negotiators continue to make progress:

Iran offl: Many issues resolved at expert/deputy level. Still are some issues which remain to be resolved at FM level.They are tough issues

Reza Marashi of the National Iranian American Council is also positive. Sunday:

By my count, Kerry & Zarif have met 4 times TODAY. All of their predecessors combined dating back to 1979 met a grand total of 0 times.

Joe Cirincione of Ploughshares says that the media are misrepresenting the debate. Nuclear experts overwhelmingly agree the deal is a good one;

There is an overwhelming consensus among non-proliferation, nuclear policy, and national security experts that a negotiated accord is the best, and likely the only, way to ensure that Iran never builds a nuclear weapon. But you would not know that if you relied on congressional hearings or most media coverage of the negotiations…

But the media are focused on the dissenters because of the aggressive neoconservative push:

The mistaken impression of where the experts stand also stems from the aggressive tactics of the opposition forces. Though light on nuclear policy experts, the groups working to kill a deal with Iran are exceptionally well funded, heavily staffed, and relentless in their bombardment of the media and the Congress with “fact sheets,” reports, letters, visits, and tweets. As several Senate staffers told me recently, “We feel under siege.” With a few exceptions, pro-deal experts are, to put it politely, more restrained in offering their opinion. Nor do liberals have the massive propaganda machine that conservatives enjoy.

Cirincione cites a series of letters in April by 50 international experts/leaders, and 16 experts/leaders, and a third letter from the Atlantic Council in favor of a deal, says the experts are agreed that an inspections regime can work:

[One former IAEA analyst writes,] “Even the skeptics should have confidence that if Iran changes course, IAEA verification will work in time for intervention to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.”

That is where most nuclear policy experts stand. They are cognizant of the shortcomings and aware of the advances. Scores of experts hold these views. In fact, there are too many to list in this article.

Here come the neocons. The Emergency Committee for Israel is worried that Chuck Schumer will support the deal.

It released the video above last week, and says, “Obama is caving to Iran.”

Senator Schumer says a deal with Iran must include anytime, anywhere inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities. But the Obama administration is caving on inspections. Call Senator Schumer and tell him to stand firm.

The same message from a neoconservative shell group, “Secure America Now”:

Keep calling @SenSchumer & tell him to oppose a bad #IranDeal where Iran gets nuclear weapons! Call now

The neoconservatives’ favorite senator is Arkansas’s Tom Cotton, who echoed the line on This Week on ABC:

Iran is an anti-American, terrorist-sponsoring outlaw regime that has killed thousands of Americans from Beirut to Iraq to Afghanistan… That video the Iranian foreign minister posted over the weekend with that smug, condescending tone, shows just how far down the path we’ve gone towards Iran’s position.

Iran was negotiating from a position of weakness… As that video shows, they think they’re in a position of strength and that they hold all the cards.

Here is Zarif’s kumbaya message of Friday in full:

I’m in Vienna to put a long overdue end to an unnecessary crisis. At this eleventh hour, despite some differences that remain, we have never been closer to a lasting outcome. But there is no guarantee.
Getting to yes requires the courage to compromise, the self-confidence to be flexible, the maturity to be reasonable, the wisdom to set aside illusions, and the audacity to break old habits.
Some stubbornly believe that military and economic coercion can ensure submission. They still insist on spending other people’s money or sacrificing other people’s children for their own delusional designs.
I see hope, because I see emergence of reason over illusion. I sense that my negotiating partners have recognized that coercion and pressure never lead to lasting solutions, but to more conflict and further hostility. They have seen that 8 years of aggression by Saddam Hussein and all his patrons did not bring the Iranian nation – that stood all alone — to its knees. And now, they realize that the most indiscriminate and unjust economic sanctions against my country have achieved absolutely none of their declared objectives; but instead have harmed innocents and antagonized a peaceful and forgiving nation.
They thus opted for the negotiating table. But they still need to make a critical and historic choice: Agreement or coercion. In politics—as in life—you can’t gain at the expense of others; such gains are always short-lived. Only balanced agreements can withstand the test of time.
We are ready to strike a balanced and good deal; and open new horizons to address important, common challenges.
Our common threat today is the growing menace of violent extremism and outright barbarism. Iran was first to rise to the challenge and propose to make confronting this threat a global priority, when it launched WAVE – World Against Violence and Extremism. The menace we’re facing – and I say we, because no one is spared – is embodied by the hooded men who are ravaging the cradle of civilization. To deal with this new challenge new approaches are badly needed. Iran has long been at the forefront in the fight against extremism. I hope my counterparts will also turn their focus, and devote their resources, to this existential battle.
A thousand years ago, the Iranian poet Ferdowsi said:
“Be relentless in striving for the cause of Good
Bring the spring, you must; Banish the winter, you should.”
My name is Javad Zarif, and this has always been Iran’s message.

The IAEA has also put out a youtube on the Iran deal, yesterday, largely supportive of the arrangements. It is working with Iran on the protocols but more work is needed.