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Iran Seizing Sailors and the Rogue Delusion

(American Enterprise Institute) Michael Rubin - There's a common delusion that when the Islamic Revolutionary Guards kidnaps sailors it's either hardline elements trying to embarrass moderates, or rogue actors. But evidence suggests that at best, the Islamic Republic is playing a game of good cop-bad cop, and that outrages such as taking American sailors hostage are not rogue actions. In each previous case, the Iranian gunman or chief planner ended up with a promotion. Col. Amangah, the commander of the operation that seized British sailors in 2007, later was decorated as soldier of the year. It's time to stop deluding ourselves, and to judge Iran by what its actions are rather than what we would wish them to be. The writer, a former Pentagon official and Resident Scholar at AEI, is the author of Dancing with the Devil: The Perils of Engaging Rogue Regimes.
2016-01-14 00:00:00
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