Transatlantic Politics

Despite the arrests, killings and beatings of protesters in Iran, Western leaders keep  the invitation for the Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki at the G8 meeting in Trieste (Italy) next week. The Obama administration apparently still hopes the Iranians will help in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and so the Italians followed orders and did not withdraw the invitation.

According to EUobserver, Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi explained on Friday at an EU summit that the invite was "in agreement with the US administration."

"We equally believe it is important to involve Iran in the stabilisation of Afghanistan," he said.

German foreign minister Frank Walter Steinmeier, who will also be present at the G8 meeting, also said that retracting the invitation would not help - not with the nuclear file, nor the current demonstrations.

"I think we must respect the US position in criticising strongly the reaction of Iranian authorities towards the demonstrators, but we must also realise that we won’t solve these conflicts just by withdrawing our foreign policy activities," said Steinmeier.

Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton broke her elbow and won’t be able to travel next week. Which makes it even less understandable why the US still wants the Iranian minister to be there. Wouldn’t it appear as if the West is accepting the brutal crackdown on demonstrators?

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