Iran did the right thing to release the British Soldiers.
Whether they really transpass into Iran waters or not is a
different matter. Soldiers should never be sacrifice because of
Politicians mistakes.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad defused a growing confrontation with
Britain, announcing the surprise release of 15 captive British
sailors Wednesday and then gleefully accepting the crew's thanks
and handshakes in what he called an Easter gift.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair expressed "profound relief" over
the peaceful end to the 13-day crisis. "Throughout we have taken a
measured approach - firm but calm, not negotiating, but not
confronting either," Blair said in London, adding a message to the
Iranian people that "we bear you no ill will."
The announcement in Tehran was a breakthrough in a crisis that had
escalated over nearly two weeks, raising oil prices and fears of
military conflict in the volatile region. The move to release the
sailors suggested that Iran's hard-line leadership decided it had
shown its strength but did not want to push the standoff too
far.
Iran did not get the main thing it sought - a public apology for
entering Iranian waters. Britain, which said its crew was in Iraqi
waters when seized, insists it never offered a quid pro quo,
either, instead relying on quiet diplomacy.
Syria, Iran's close ally, said it played a role in winning the
release. "Syria exercised a sort of quiet diplomacy to solve this
problem and encourage dialogue between the two parties," Syrian
Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said in Damascus.
The announcement of the release came hours after U.S. House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi met with President Bashar Assad in Damascus, trying to
show that a U.S. dialogue with Syria - rejected by the Bush
administration - could bring benefits for the Middle East. The
British sailors were not part of their talks, and it was not clear
if the release was timed to coincide with her visit.
Iran's official news agency said the British crew was to leave Iran
by plane on Thursday at 8 a.m. By Wednesday evening they had still
not been handed over to the British Embassy in Tehran and the
embassy said it was not clear where they would spend the night.
Britain's ambassador met with the sailors and confirmed they were
in good health, Britain's Foreign Office said.
Several British newspapers credited Blair's foreign policy adviser
Nigel Sheinwald and Iranian chief negotiator Ali Larijani with
laying the groundwork for an agreement during telephone contacts
that began Tuesday night. Larijani had gone on British TV on Monday
and signaled that Tehran was looking for a diplomatic
solution.
British officials were told to pay close attention to Ahmadinejad's
press conference but were unsure the release would come until they
heard his words, The Independent newspaper said.
Ahmadinejad timed the announcement so as to make a dramatic splash,
springing it halfway through a two-hour news conference.
The president first gave a medal of honor to the commander of the
Iranian coast guards who captured the Britons, and admonished
London for sending a mother, Leading Seaman Faye Turney, on such a
dangerous mission in the Persian Gulf.
He said the British government was "not brave enough" to admit the
crew had been in Iranian waters when it was captured.
Ahmadinejad then declared that even though Iran had the right to
put the Britons on trial, he had "pardoned" them to mark the March
30 birthday of the Prophet Muhammad and the coming Easter
holiday.
"This pardon is a gift to the British people," he said.
After the news conference, Iranian television showed a beaming
Ahmadinejad on the steps of the presidential palace shaking hands
with the Britons - some towering over him. The men were decked out
in business suits and Turney wore an Islamic head scarf.
"Your people have been really kind to us, and we appreciate it very
much," one of the British men told Ahmadinejad in English. Another
male service member said: "We are grateful for your
forgiveness."
Ahmadinejad responded in Farsi, "You are welcome."
Three members of the crew were later interviewed on Iranian
state-run television, apologizing for the alleged incursion into
Iran's waters and again thanking Ahmadinejad for their
release.
"I can understand why you're insulted by the intrusion into the
waters," said Lt. Felix Carman, shown seated on a couch.
"Thank you for letting us go and we apologize for our actions, but
many thanks for having it in your hearts to let us go free," Turney
said.
The breakthrough caught the British government by surprise. On
Tuesday, Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett cautioned reporters not
to expect a quick end to the standoff.
The U.S. cautiously welcomed Iran's announcement, though Vice
President Dick Cheney said "it was unfortunate that they were ever
taken in the first place."
With the timing unclear for release of the captives - President
Bush and others have called them "hostages" - administration
officials reacted positively but allowed Blair to do the lion's
share of the public talking.
The British crew was seized March 23 as it searched for smugglers.
Iran broadcast footage of Turney and some other crew members
"confessing" they had entered Iranian waters. An infuriated Britain
froze most bilateral contacts, prompting Tehran to roll back on a
pledge to free Turney.
Wednesday's announcement led some analysts to conclude that Iran's
supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, decided the crisis had gone
on long enough at a time when Tehran faces mounting pressure over
its nuclear program. A day after the British were seized, the U.N.
Security Council imposed new sanctions on Iran for refusing to halt
uranium enrichment.
During Ahmadinejad's news conference, the hardline president said
Britain had sent a letter to the Iranian Foreign Ministry pledging
that entering Iranian waters "will not happen again." Tehran had
demanded an apology for the alleged entry into its waters.
Britain's Foreign Office would not give details about the letter
but said its position was clear that the detained crew had been in
Iraqi waters.
Regardless of the territorial issue, the standoff showed that
Tehran has ways to push back after the U.S. and Britain beefed up
their military presence in the Persian Gulf this year.
The U.S. has accused Iran of sending weapons to Shiite militias in
Iraq. That led to speculation that the Iranians seized the Britons
in retaliation for the detention of five Iranians by U.S. forces in
the northern Iraqi city of Irbil in January. Iran denied any
connection.
Shortly before the announcement, Iranian state media reported that
an Iranian envoy would be allowed to meet the five Iranians. A U.S.
military spokesman in Baghdad said American authorities were
considering the request, although an international Red Cross team,
including one Iranian, had visited the prisoners.
Another Iranian diplomat, separately seized two months ago by
uniformed gunmen in Iraq, was released and returned Tuesday to
Tehran. Iran accused the Americans of abducting him, a charge the
U.S. denied.President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad defused a growing
confrontation with Britain, announcing the surprise release of 15
captive British sailors Wednesday and then gleefully accepting the
crew's thanks and handshakes in what he called an Easter
gift.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair expressed "profound relief" over
the peaceful end to the 13-day crisis. "Throughout we have taken a
measured approach - firm but calm, not negotiating, but not
confronting either," Blair said in London, adding a message to the
Iranian people that "we bear you no ill will."
The announcement in Tehran was a breakthrough in a crisis that had
escalated over nearly two weeks, raising oil prices and fears of
military conflict in the volatile region. The move to release the
sailors suggested that Iran's hard-line leadership decided it had
shown its strength but did not want to push the standoff too
far.
Iran did not get the main thing it sought - a public apology for
entering Iranian waters. Britain, which said its crew was in Iraqi
waters when seized, insists it never offered a quid pro quo,
either, instead relying on quiet diplomacy.
Syria, Iran's close ally, said it played a role in winning the
release. "Syria exercised a sort of quiet diplomacy to solve this
problem and encourage dialogue between the two parties," Syrian
Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said in Damascus.
The announcement of the release came hours after U.S. House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi met with President Bashar Assad in Damascus, trying to
show that a U.S. dialogue with Syria - rejected by the Bush
administration - could bring benefits for the Middle East. The
British sailors were not part of their talks, and it was not clear
if the release was timed to coincide with her visit.
Iran's official news agency said the British crew was to leave Iran
by plane on Thursday at 8 a.m. By Wednesday evening they had still
not been handed over to the British Embassy in Tehran and the
embassy said it was not clear where they would spend the night.
Britain's ambassador met with the sailors and confirmed they were
in good health, Britain's Foreign Office said.
Several British newspapers credited Blair's foreign policy adviser
Nigel Sheinwald and Iranian chief negotiator Ali Larijani with
laying the groundwork for an agreement during telephone contacts
that began Tuesday night. Larijani had gone on British TV on Monday
and signaled that Tehran was looking for a diplomatic
solution.
British officials were told to pay close attention to Ahmadinejad's
press conference but were unsure the release would come until they
heard his words, The Independent newspaper said.
Ahmadinejad timed the announcement so as to make a dramatic splash,
springing it halfway through a two-hour news conference.
The president first gave a medal of honor to the commander of the
Iranian coast guards who captured the Britons, and admonished
London for sending a mother, Leading Seaman Faye Turney, on such a
dangerous mission in the Persian Gulf.
He said the British government was "not brave enough" to admit the
crew had been in Iranian waters when it was captured.
Ahmadinejad then declared that even though Iran had the right to
put the Britons on trial, he had "pardoned" them to mark the March
30 birthday of the Prophet Muhammad and the coming Easter
holiday.
"This pardon is a gift to the British people," he said.
After the news conference, Iranian television showed a beaming
Ahmadinejad on the steps of the presidential palace shaking hands
with the Britons - some towering over him. The men were decked out
in business suits and Turney wore an Islamic head scarf.
"Your people have been really kind to us, and we appreciate it very
much," one of the British men told Ahmadinejad in English. Another
male service member said: "We are grateful for your
forgiveness."
Ahmadinejad responded in Farsi, "You are welcome."
Three members of the crew were later interviewed on Iranian
state-run television, apologizing for the alleged incursion into
Iran's waters and again thanking Ahmadinejad for their
release.
"I can understand why you're insulted by the intrusion into the
waters," said Lt. Felix Carman, shown seated on a couch.
"Thank you for letting us go and we apologize for our actions, but
many thanks for having it in your hearts to let us go free," Turney
said.
The breakthrough caught the British government by surprise. On
Tuesday, Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett cautioned reporters not
to expect a quick end to the standoff.
The U.S. cautiously welcomed Iran's announcement, though Vice
President Dick Cheney said "it was unfortunate that they were ever
taken in the first place."
With the timing unclear for release of the captives - President
Bush and others have called them "hostages" - administration
officials reacted positively but allowed Blair to do the lion's
share of the public talking.
The British crew was seized March 23 as it searched for smugglers.
Iran broadcast footage of Turney and some other crew members
"confessing" they had entered Iranian waters. An infuriated Britain
froze most bilateral contacts, prompting Tehran to roll back on a
pledge to free Turney.
Wednesday's announcement led some analysts to conclude that Iran's
supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, decided the crisis had gone
on long enough at a time when Tehran faces mounting pressure over
its nuclear program. A day after the British were seized, the U.N.
Security Council imposed new sanctions on Iran for refusing to halt
uranium enrichment.
During Ahmadinejad's news conference, the hardline president said
Britain had sent a letter to the Iranian Foreign Ministry pledging
that entering Iranian waters "will not happen again." Tehran had
demanded an apology for the alleged entry into its waters.
Britain's Foreign Office would not give details about the letter
but said its position was clear that the detained crew had been in
Iraqi waters.
Regardless of the territorial issue, the standoff showed that
Tehran has ways to push back after the U.S. and Britain beefed up
their military presence in the Persian Gulf this year.
The U.S. has accused Iran of sending weapons to Shiite militias in
Iraq. That led to speculation that the Iranians seized the Britons
in retaliation for the detention of five Iranians by U.S. forces in
the northern Iraqi city of Irbil in January. Iran denied any
connection.
Shortly before the announcement, Iranian state media reported that
an Iranian envoy would be allowed to meet the five Iranians. A U.S.
military spokesman in Baghdad said American authorities were
considering the request, although an international Red Cross team,
including one Iranian, had visited the prisoners.
Another Iranian diplomat, separately seized two months ago by
uniformed gunmen in Iraq, was released and returned Tuesday to
Tehran. Iran accused the Americans of abducting him, a charge the
U.S. denied.-AP