The year 2011 has started with what might be a huge shift in Iranian foreign policies. This doesn't necessarily mean that Iran will be drawn into internal chaos or a confrontation with the international community. Indeed, it will probably become more engaged with the international community and try to extricate itself from the nuclear deadlock. All these expectations started with the sacking last month of Iranian Foreign Minister Manochehr Motaki, a quite, conservative diplomat who never met the requirements of his fiery, passionate boss, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Early in December 2010, in a live interview with Iranian TV, Ahmadinejad claimed that there are now two major world powers ��" Iran and the United States! The President of Iran wants the nation to believe this, in order to increase national confidence and make himself more popular. Iran wants a bigger international role than Arab states expect and European countries believe possible. Most countries think of Iran as a nation weakened by the Revolution. But the reality is different. The Revolution and the new system have scared away foreigners, which means they haven't witnessed the new changes. Today, Iran is a diverse and dynamic country, more than 60 per cent of whose population is under 30. In spite of a bad economy and unemployment, many Iranians are still able to travel abroad and enjoy a better lifestyle than their neighbours in countries like Pakistan, India and even Turkey. (We need hardly mention Afghanistan or Iraq). Iran has expanded its missile capabilities and military equipment to shield it to some degree from an unexpected foreign attack on its nuclear programme, which has cost it a lot of money and led to isolation, after four rounds of sanctions. Without the embargoes and sanctions, Iran's economy would be much better off, but the Iranians insist on having nuclear technology, because they are always suspicious about what's happening on their borders. Today Iran is bordered by the United States on two sides, as Iraq and Afghanistan are both under US control. No wonder Iran doesn't feel safe! The country has bitter memories. When President of Iraq Saddam Hussein attacked Iran in the 1980s, dragging to the two countries into a very long war, there was noone to take Iran's side. Many Iranian civilians were killed or permanently disabled by Saddam's chemical weapons. Iranians don't like to remember the eight-year war with Iraq. Former US President George W. Bush said in his memoirs that he wasn't sure whether to attack Iraq or Iran at 2003; in the end he chose the former. With its nuclear weapons that shield it from the threat from Asia and the major powers, North Korea is the perfect model for Iran. In my opinion, Iran doesn't want to look like North Korea by closing the doors on the rest of the world and starving its citizens, but it is very concerned about self-defence. Iran knows that is hard for many of the Arab nations to tolerate this revolutionised, undemocratic Shi'ite country. But human rights could improve in Iran, if it grew closer to US and the latter accepted it as a growing, powerful nation in the region. If Iran had nuclear technology, it would have the same status as Japan and Brazil. Of course, the international community doesn't want Iran to have the nuclear bomb. Such bombs can be made very quickly and perhaps this is what Iran is trying to do. Iran's behaviour has also changed because of the Stuxnet virus, which, according to foreign intelligence reports, has seriously affected Iran's sensitive nuclear programme, paralysing many centrifuges at the Natanz nuclear site and even at the Busher nuclear plant, which only became operational a few months ago. All these problems could delay Iran's nuclear programme for another couple of years at least, so it's unsurprising that the country's foreign policies is changing. One of its top priorities in 2011 is to improve its image.
