Identifier | Created | Classification | Origin |
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06YEREVAN1374 | 2006-10-04 06:43:00 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Yerevan |
VZCZCXRO9091 RR RUEHBC RUEHDE RUEHKUK DE RUEHYE #1374/01 2770643 ZNY CCCCC ZZH R 040643Z OCT 06 FM AMEMBASSY YEREVAN TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 4059 INFO RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE |
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 001374 |
1. (C) A Tehran professor who participated in a local thinktank's seminar this week in Yerevan said sanctions and incompetent Iranian foreign policy were to blame for Iran's lack of involvement in the South Caucasus. He also complained that Iran was being punished for its intentions to build a nuclear program rather than for its actions. Poloff met with the professor, M. Farhad Atai, between sessions to get a feel for the climate in Iranian universities. The professor said that, although Iranian youth had recently been favorably disposed towards the West and the United States, the tide had begun to turn in the last few years. He said the Iranian government was not as monolithic as the West would like to believe. The professor also said that, while in general, Iranian students study abroad in order to obtain a high-quality education, those who come to Armenia to study likely do so to avoid military service. END SUMMARY. 2. (C) Atai studied in the U.S. on and off between 1971 and 1990, and holds among his academic credentials a Ph.D. from Berkeley. He teaches international relations at the University of Tehran. Atai participated in a regional seminar on Euro-Atlantic integration put on by the Spectrum Center for Strategic Analysis, a respected local thinktank. -------------------------- IRAN IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS -------------------------- 3. (C) During the seminar, Atai was asked why Iran was so preoccupied with its nuclear program when it could just cooperate with the West and be a productive force in the South Caucasus. He answered that the two things -- Iran's nuclear program and its activities in the region -- were not related. Citing the United States' part in blocking Iranian participation in the Azerbaijani oil consortium, Atai said U.S. policy and the economic blockade had effectively put Iran out of business in the South Caucasus. He said the incompetence of post-revolution Iranian foreign policy was also to blame. Atai went on to argue that a small minority among the Iranian establishment had turned its nuclear agenda into a question of national pride, but concluded with the words, "Iran is being punished for its intentions, not its actions. This is unprecedented. The West and the U.S. are saying 'We don't trust you.'" -------------------------- BIG BROTHER ISN'T WATCHING -------------------------- 4. (C) Atai, a moderate, secular Iranian who has taught for years, claimed he had never experienced any censorship, nor any backlash for expressing moderate views. He said that, while fundamentalist factions existed in universities, the majority of students at the University of Tehran were secular. Atai said there were government offices at his university, just as in every university, but that they did not interfere with his work. "The Iranian government is not monolithic," Atai said. "That is the most widespread misperception about the Iranian government." Atai said that, while President Ahmadinejad's administration is conservative, there are mullahs in the government who are more secular, liberal and reform-minded. 5. (C) Atai said there were two competing forces at work in Iranian society's perception of the United States. On the one hand, he said, President Ahmadinejad's administration is very unpopular, and his continued anti-American rhetoric has had the contradictory effect of endearing the U.S. to Iranians, particularly to Iranian youth. (NOTE: Atai said he believed Ahmadinejad was not fairly elected, and said the president has been unpopular since before his election. END NOTE.) But on the other hand, Atai said Iranians are tired of sanctions. He said that the pro-U.S. view had had the upper hand before the war in Iraq, but that now the balance had shifted. -------------------------- IT'S EITHER THE ARMY, OR ARMENIA -------------------------- 6. (C) While most Iranians who come to Armenia to study are ethnic Armenians, a much smaller number of non-Armenian Iranians also attend university here, and show up at our visa windows every few months. Atai, speaking perhaps with a YEREVAN 00001374 002 OF 002 touch of academic snobbery, noted that non-Armenian Iranians couldn't possibly choose Armenia for the quality of its universities, and suggested that they were doing so primarily to avoid military service. He said Iranian law allows students who have studied abroad for at least two years -- anywhere, not just in Armenia -- to pay a fee and get out of military service. -------------------------- COMMENT -------------------------- 7. (C) While we can't confirm whether Atai's statements are true, he is considered a reputable source by the Spectrum Center, with which he has cooperated in the past. He has also lectured in the United States and published a paper critical of Ahmadinejad's election campaign conduct. While some of his claims -- such as his assertion that he has not experienced any censorship -- may be exaggerated, we believe him to be credible. GODFREY |