By Gamal Salama Two days ago, on the eve of the deadline set by UN Resolution 1747 for Iran to halt uranium-enriching activities, Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Mohamed Al-Baradei, submitted a report to the UN Security Council stating that Iran was continuing with its nuclear efforts. It admitted that the agency's ability to monitor the Iranian nuclear programme had decreased due to obstacles Tehran had placed before its inspectors; that it was hard for the agency to attest that it is "peaceful". Clear suspicion is on Iran. Despite this, the spokesperson of the Iranian Foreign Ministry said that the new IAEA report was another success story in Iran's nuclear diplomacy. This confusion may be cleared if the nature of Iranian diplomacy is examined. The difficulty of ascertaining the conclusion to the Iranian issue is due to the nature of the complicated role played so skilfully by the Iranian regime since the beginning of the crisis. The nuclear crisis has become America's more than Iran's. Iran has continued to play the stronger leading role throughout the first quarter. Here we are facing a new and rare kind of theatre for international events. There is no doubt that the main actors in the Iranian nuclear issue are Iran, the United States, the European Union, Russia, China and Israel. Syria plays a supporting role to Iran, and although the role is a little large for it. There is also Hizbullah playing a role that would almost make it a lead were it not for its material (and not political) limitations. And there is a whole crew of supports for the American protagonist, not to mention the Gulf States, which have excelled in this supporting role throughout their political, I mean, artistic history (they have never been found in any other role). Then there are the extras, those who are silent and others who move just to fill in the shot. Some of them move their lips to inaudible words, mouthing the orders of the American director, or on their own initiative, so as to convince others of the importance of their role in the peripheral scene. Finally, there are the viewers, some of whom watch enthusiastically, others listlessly, and others still asleep, until the scenery collapses or the stage sets on fire. This week's Soapbox speaker is a professor of political science at the Suez Canal University.
