LoungeMachine
02-16-2006, 02:23 AM
Rice Is Seeking $85 Million to Prod Changes in Iran
By STEVEN R. WEISMAN
Published: February 16, 2006
WASHINGTON — The Bush administration, frustrated by Iranian defiance over its nuclear program, proposed Wednesday to spend $85 million to promote political change inside Iran by subsidizing dissident groups, unions, student fellowships and television and radio broadcasts.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, announcing a request for the money at a Senate hearing, said the administration had worked out a way to circumvent American laws barring financial relations with Iran to allow some money to go directly to groups promoting change inside the country. "We are going to begin a new effort to support the aspirations of the Iranian people," Ms. Rice said at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "We will use this money to develop support networks for Iranian reformers, political dissidents and human rights activists."
Senior State Department officials said they did not intend to publicize recipients of the money in the future, for fear that they could be jailed or even killed. "This is a very good idea, but all these efforts face the same problem," said Michael McFaul, a political science professor at Stanford University. "In working with their potential colleagues in Iran, will they get them into trouble? Once they participate in a training program, what happens to them back in their country?"
The scope of the administration's effort goes beyond the numbers. Until now, the United States has been cautious about supporting dissident groups, fearful that Iranians may view these efforts as an echo of past American meddling in Iran's affairs. Though no one uses the words "regime change" to describe the ultimate American goal, that term has been used by conservatives in Congress who have in the last few years pressed for aid to Iranian dissidents.
Ms. Rice said the State Department was requesting $75 million to promote democracy in Iran, which she said would be added to $10 million already appropriated for that purpose. The total is an increase from only $3.5 million the previous year. Until recently, the administration has been cautious about embracing the "regime change" approach, but some conservatives at the Defense Department and Vice President Dick Cheney's office are known to be resigned to a nuclear-armed Iran and to argue that the best way to address that problem is by opening Iran to democracy and reform.
American officials, asking not to be identified while discussing internal administration deliberations, said the election last year of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose actions and statements have alarmed the West, had strengthened the hands of those who want to promote internal change in Iran. European countries involved in negotiating with Iran over the last year have also been uneasy until recently about doing anything to provoke Iranian leaders. But now that talks over Iran's nuclear program are at an impasse, and Iran is proceeding with uranium enrichment in defiance of the West, there is less concern about harming relations.
Ms. Rice's announcement is considered certain to anger Iranian leaders, who have long cited the American support for a coup in 1953 as an example of its designs on Iran.
The administration's limited attempts to channel money to human rights groups, labor unions and political organizations in Iran have not achieved much success so far, and many experts fear that future efforts could aid the wrong people or backfire on them if the financing becomes public.
The administration will try to upgrade American broadcasts into Iran by Voice of America and Radio Farda, an American-sponsored station that mostly plays music. Ms. Rice's announcement said the administration would try to form partnerships with Farsi satellite television and radio stations in Los Angeles. But Iranian experts caution that the private American stations have content that may be viewed as unsuitable in Iran. In addition, American officials say the administration needs to be careful not to align itself with people in the Iranian diaspora who have political agendas that are unpopular in Iran. Among these are monarchists who support the family of the late shah of Iran.
The American aid announced by Ms. Rice is to include $25 million to support "political dissidents, labor union leaders and human rights activists" and to work with nongovernmental organizations outside Iran to build support inside the country. The administration plans $50 million to increase television broadcasting to 24 hours a day all week in Farsi into Iran. Another $5 million is aimed at bringing Iranian students and scholars to study in the West, and $5 million more is earmarked for setting up Internet sites.
By STEVEN R. WEISMAN
Published: February 16, 2006
WASHINGTON — The Bush administration, frustrated by Iranian defiance over its nuclear program, proposed Wednesday to spend $85 million to promote political change inside Iran by subsidizing dissident groups, unions, student fellowships and television and radio broadcasts.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, announcing a request for the money at a Senate hearing, said the administration had worked out a way to circumvent American laws barring financial relations with Iran to allow some money to go directly to groups promoting change inside the country. "We are going to begin a new effort to support the aspirations of the Iranian people," Ms. Rice said at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. "We will use this money to develop support networks for Iranian reformers, political dissidents and human rights activists."
Senior State Department officials said they did not intend to publicize recipients of the money in the future, for fear that they could be jailed or even killed. "This is a very good idea, but all these efforts face the same problem," said Michael McFaul, a political science professor at Stanford University. "In working with their potential colleagues in Iran, will they get them into trouble? Once they participate in a training program, what happens to them back in their country?"
The scope of the administration's effort goes beyond the numbers. Until now, the United States has been cautious about supporting dissident groups, fearful that Iranians may view these efforts as an echo of past American meddling in Iran's affairs. Though no one uses the words "regime change" to describe the ultimate American goal, that term has been used by conservatives in Congress who have in the last few years pressed for aid to Iranian dissidents.
Ms. Rice said the State Department was requesting $75 million to promote democracy in Iran, which she said would be added to $10 million already appropriated for that purpose. The total is an increase from only $3.5 million the previous year. Until recently, the administration has been cautious about embracing the "regime change" approach, but some conservatives at the Defense Department and Vice President Dick Cheney's office are known to be resigned to a nuclear-armed Iran and to argue that the best way to address that problem is by opening Iran to democracy and reform.
American officials, asking not to be identified while discussing internal administration deliberations, said the election last year of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose actions and statements have alarmed the West, had strengthened the hands of those who want to promote internal change in Iran. European countries involved in negotiating with Iran over the last year have also been uneasy until recently about doing anything to provoke Iranian leaders. But now that talks over Iran's nuclear program are at an impasse, and Iran is proceeding with uranium enrichment in defiance of the West, there is less concern about harming relations.
Ms. Rice's announcement is considered certain to anger Iranian leaders, who have long cited the American support for a coup in 1953 as an example of its designs on Iran.
The administration's limited attempts to channel money to human rights groups, labor unions and political organizations in Iran have not achieved much success so far, and many experts fear that future efforts could aid the wrong people or backfire on them if the financing becomes public.
The administration will try to upgrade American broadcasts into Iran by Voice of America and Radio Farda, an American-sponsored station that mostly plays music. Ms. Rice's announcement said the administration would try to form partnerships with Farsi satellite television and radio stations in Los Angeles. But Iranian experts caution that the private American stations have content that may be viewed as unsuitable in Iran. In addition, American officials say the administration needs to be careful not to align itself with people in the Iranian diaspora who have political agendas that are unpopular in Iran. Among these are monarchists who support the family of the late shah of Iran.
The American aid announced by Ms. Rice is to include $25 million to support "political dissidents, labor union leaders and human rights activists" and to work with nongovernmental organizations outside Iran to build support inside the country. The administration plans $50 million to increase television broadcasting to 24 hours a day all week in Farsi into Iran. Another $5 million is aimed at bringing Iranian students and scholars to study in the West, and $5 million more is earmarked for setting up Internet sites.