By James G. Zumwalt
Published May 25, 2007
Talks between senior U.S. and Iranian officials to explore how to bring stability to Iraq are now scheduled in Baghdad for May 28. It is important those who see this as a positive step forward, including members of the Iraq Study Group who suggested such an initiative last year, now understand why the chances of substantive progress via such discussions are zero.
(1) Despite the numerous complexities contributing to the fighting in Iraq, there should be no doubt Iran is the predominant cause of the violence. Dry up the flow of trained terrorists, weapons, improved explosive device (IED) technology, Qods Force personnel and funding originating in Iran and the violence in Iraq will be reduced to manageable levels.
(2) While it is doubtful the meeting will lead to an agreement, the Islamofascists, such as those in Tehran, adhere to an interpretation of the Koran that allows them to deceive nonbelievers, such as those in Washington. Islamofascists believe under Islam they can make any promise necessary to placate nonbelievers -- while having absolutely no intention of honoring such promises -- to advance the cause of Islam. This served as justification for Tehran's initial, secret, nuclear power program and then, after its discovery, the claim Iran only seeks nuclear power for peaceful purposes.
(3) However, most worrisome is the requirement under the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran for Tehran that its revolution be exported around the world -- a mandate embedded within the country's national psyche through the preamble of its own constitution. After the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini swept to power in Iran in 1979, he made it clear Iran was but the first step in a worldwide effort to spread his version of Islam. The constitution's preamble states Iran's army "will be responsible not only for safeguarding the borders, but also for accomplishing an ideological mission, that is, the Jihad for the sake of God, as well as for struggling to open the way for the sovereignty of the Word of God throughout the world."
Alireza Jafarzadeh, who is credited with exposing Iran's secret nuclear program in 2002, describes this national psyche under the current regime of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in his book
"The Iran Threat." Mr. Jafarzadeh says, "The driving force of the regime is a long-held ambition to spread its repressive brand of Islamic extremist rule throughout the Middle East and beyond. Anyone who thinks this expansionist zeal has faded with time and that Iranian leaders have been on a slow, inevitable course toward moderation has only to listen to one speech by Ahmadinejad. The regime may have toyed with the outer trappings of a reformist attitude in the 1990s, but the current government has given up that charade, and Ahmadinejad is the most authentic voice of the regime since Khomeini himself lambasted the United States as the 'Great Satan.' "
Kiran Chetry: Well, the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog agency says Iran is not only ignoring calls to halt its nuclear work, but actually increasing its activities. That report comes as an American armada flexes its military muscle. There you see it, a show of force in the Persian Gulf. And Iran detains yet another American scholar. So where is all of this headed? Alireza Jafarzadeh is a leading authority on Iran and its nuclear ambitions. He's the author of 
