Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes said Iran would be more likely to evolve into a rational actor on a world stage with a nuclear deal than without one.
Rhodes made these rather hopeful remarks during an interview with The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg at the Aspen Ideas Festival on Monday.
Ben Rhodes: "We believe that the kiss of the nuke deal will turn the Iranian frog into a handsome prince" | https://t.co/F7SkdslCJw
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"We believe that an agreement is necessary and has to be good enough to be worth doing, even if Iran doesn’t change," he said. "If 10 or 15 years from now, Iran is the same as it is today in terms of its government, the deal has to be good enough that it can exist on those merits. That said, we believe that a world in which there is a deal with Iran is much more likely to produce an evolution in Iranian behavior than a world in which there is no deal."
Even with key deadlines approaching in negotiations to potentially lift sanctions against the country, Iranian Parliament members have reportedly chanted "Death to America," which State Department spokesman John Kirby called "not helpful." The U.S. has made multiple concessions to Iran since the beginning of the negotiating process on measures like inspections and disclosure of nuclear activities.
Rhodes repeated his belief that Iran would have a better chance of joining the world community during his long answer to Goldberg
"In a world of a deal, there is a greater possibility that you will see Iran evolve in a direction in which they are more engaged with the international community and less dependent upon the types of activities that they’ve been engaged in," he said.
Rhodes also said the Iranians opposing negotiations with the U.S. were the hardliners.
Full exchange:
JEFFREY GOLDBERG: Does the president actually see Iran as an adversary? There is huge worry – I mean, you have united every American ally in the Middle East on this question, from Israel to Saudi Arabia, on the question of how the president understands Iran. There’s a great fear that he thinks that he’s going to be able to convert them toward becoming a rational actor on the international stage. Do you believe that, that they’re going to change out of this?
BEN RHODES: So we believe that an agreement is necessary and has to be good enough to be worth doing, even if Iran doesn’t change. If 10 or 15 years from now, Iran is the same as it is today in terms of its government, the deal has to be good enough that it can exist on those merits. That said, we believe that a world in which there is a deal with Iran is much more likely to produce an evolution in Iranian behavior than a world in which there is no deal. In fact, to take some of the criticisms, if the notion is that Iran has been engaged in these destabilizing activities under the last several years when they’ve been under the pressure of sanctions, well clearly sanctions are not acting as some deterrent against them doing destabilizing activities in the region.
Secondly, the very people inside of Iran who oppose this deal are the worst actors inside of Iran, the hardliners who are very comfortable being in a sanctions environment where they have illicit sources of funding and they’re empowered in the system. There is an Iranian populace that clearly wants to move in a different direction. That’s why they elected a different type of candidate. That’s not to say we’re not going to have profound differences with President Rouhani. But the point is, I think, in a world of a deal, there is a greater possibility that you will see Iran evolve in a direction in which they are more engaged with the international community and less dependent upon the types of activities that they’ve been engaged in.