COMMENTARY | Following the attack on the British embassy in Tehran, a major setback has occurred in terms of diplomacy between two nations that are already ad odds with one another. According to The Telegraph, the British embassy was ransacked as a result of sanctions levied against the Iranian government by England and other Western nations. If Iran wanted to show how peaceful it is to the rest of the world, this is definitely not the way to do it.
With the stiff control that Iran seemingly has on every move the citizens of that country make, it would be easy to argue this is something that could have been prevented. Iran can so easily prevent an equal rights protest, but it cannot prevent another nation's embassy from being attacked. Now why is that? It's simple: Iran doesn't want to admit that it is wrong.
These sanctions that ultimately resulted in the British embassy being trashed were not from Iran acting peacefully. They originated after an Atomic Energy Agency report stated Iran was producing materials that could be used in nuclear weapons. The actions of those in the attack on the embassy resemble a country throwing a temper tantrum when it is punished for something it did wrong. Nothing in them constitutes a country wanting to set things right and keep a dialog going forth between nations. If a country doesn't want any relations with them, Iran has nobody to blame but themselves.
The AP is saying the German government is strongly considering withdrawing all of its diplomats from Iran. As I have said before, you have to be firm with a bully. Iran is not acting as a country that wants to be on friendly relations with any western nation. Iran gives the appearance that it is a country spoiling for a fight. Iran should consider this while it is letting embassies get raided and countries are refusing to do any business with them; what happens when it actually needs the help of another nation?
