It’s a brand new day. As shares in Gulf markets climb, people are celebrating the historic deal around the world with a collective sigh of relief. U.S. mainstream media reports a “3-decade gridlock broken” and “game-changing rapprochement” it’s lots of doom and gloom over in Israel, they’re not taking any part in “the international celebration“.
Details have emerged the U.S. had been holding secret meetings with Iranian officials in the Omani capital of Muscat since last March, facilitated by Sultan Qaboos of Oman. Qaboos offered himself as a mediator for U.S.-Iran rapprochement after playing a key role in the release of American hikers who were imprisoned by Iran after allegedly crossing the Iran-Iraq border in 2009. Qaboos was also the first foreign leader to visit Iranian President Rouhani after he was elected and has good relations with both Washington and Tehran.
The Associated Press reports only a tight circle of people knew about the meetings, Secret US-Iran talks set stage for nuke deal:
The talks were held in the Middle Eastern nation of Oman and elsewhere with only a tight circle of people in the know, the AP learned. Since March, Deputy Secretary of State William Burns and Jake Sullivan, Vice President Joe Biden’s top foreign policy adviser, have met at least five times with Iranian officials.
The last four clandestine meetings…. produced much of the agreement later formally hammered out in negotiations in Geneva … said three senior administration officials…….
The AP was tipped to the first U.S.-Iranian meeting in March shortly after it occurred, but the White House and State Department disputed elements of the account and the AP could not confirm the meeting. The AP learned of further indications of secret diplomacy in the fall and pressed the White House and other officials further. As the Geneva talks appeared to be reaching their conclusion, senior administration officials confirmed to the AP the details of the extensive outreach.
Deputy Secretary of State William Joseph Burns is the highest ranked foreign service officer in United States history. Previously, in 2008, as Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs during the Bush Administration, Burns met with Iranian diplomats in Geneva for nuclear talks. Reportedly, it was the first time in 30 years that a high ranking U.S. official had met with Iranian government officials.
Co-leading the Oman mission was Obama’s deputy assistant Jake Sullivan, also Biden’s national security advisor. Sullivan was tapped by TIME mag as an under 40 “rising star“.
More from AP:
At this month’s larger formal nuclear negotiations between world powers and Iran in Geneva, Burns and Sullivan showed up as well, but the State Department went to great lengths to conceal their involvement, leaving their names off of the official delegation list.
They were housed at a different hotel than the rest of the team, used back entrances to come and go from meeting venues and were whisked into negotiating sessions from service elevators or unused corridors only after photographers left.
Isabel Kershner speculated in the New York Times Israeli “outrage may have been fueled” by revelations they were kept out of the loop on the extent of the secret high-level engagement taking place in Oman.
All I can say is thank you to Burns and Sullivan. (the new duo)
Thank you to Sultan Qaboos of Oman, thanks to Mr. Kerry, Mr. Biden, and Mr. Obama.
A special thanks to Mr.Rouhani and Mr. Zarif and to the Iranian people.
This is how it’s supposed to be done– this is how peace looks. So many on the boards of the NYT, Wapo, Haaretz can’t grasp it. As for Netanyahu and his pity party– it just shrunk.
This is the best thing to save Israel from itself– the Israelis should be celebrating!
Here is the document called ‘Joint Plan of Action’
http://www.theguardian.com/world/interactive/2013/nov/24/iran-nuclear-deal-joint-plan-action
And all the way at the end is the money quote:
I think this is why the Iranians signed off on this. In the common interpretation of the NPT this acknowledges their right to
have nuclear energy and to be in control of fuel production for it.
Now the US has not conceded that right yet. They’re saying ‘if the NPT allows control over the fuel cycle then you’re allowed the same’.
At the same time they’re saying the NPT does not allow control over the fuel cycle, which is a tenuous point of view. The thing is, it now has become much harder to enforce that view upon Iran , especially now that they’ve treated Iran as a legitimate state in these negotiations.
This report must come as a stinging rebuke to Netenyahu, and Israel’s moles in Washington, given that they were kept out of the loop and seemingly unaware this was taking place.
HOW were the Israelis kept in the dark?
The State dept. private channel had an Apartheid Wall protecting it from any infil- traitors.
Kershner:
So what do you think they’ll plan?