Realities of dealing with an Islamic regime

Submitted by sara (United States), Jan 10, 2013 at 18:29

As much as I would like to be optimistic about the prospects of negotiations with Iran, and I do believe that there is a faint possibility that there would be a positive outcome, I always remember the words of Bibi Netanyahu back in the early 2000's in an interview where he remarked that the reason the Iran situation was of a different nature than the cold war or any other conflict was the lack of a deterrent. Most countries and leaders have a sense of self preservation or protection. Islamist Mullahs have removed the deterrence aspect from the equation. How can you negotiate with those who regard death from martyrdom (even if their people's and not their own) as a positive thing?

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".