Posted on 12/29/2003 7:44:58 PM PST by areafiftyone
WASHINGTON, Dec 29 (Reuters) - The first U.S. military aircraft to land in Iran in more than 20 years carried disaster response experts and tonnes of emergency supplies for victims of the Bam earthquake, U.S. officials said on Monday.
But they stressed the move was strictly in response to the humanitarian disaster and reflected no change in policy toward Iran, which President George W. Bush has labeled part of an "axis of evil."
"The United States' primary focus right now is assisting the Iranian people with what they need," White House spokesman Trent Duffy told reporters in Crawford, Texas, where Bush is spending the New Year's holiday.
"The U.S. policy remains the same," he said.
In contrast to Iran's rejection of all offers of international assistance after a 1990 earthquake that killed more than 30,000 people, Iranian President Mohammad Khatami has said help is welcome from everywhere except Israel.
The United Nations praised Iran for quickly letting in foreign rescue and relief teams, including from countries Tehran views as unfriendly, to help the victims of Friday's earthquake -- the world's worst in a decade.
Shaul Bakhash, a Middle East scholar at the Brookings Institution in Washington, said Iran's acceptance of help showed Tehran's changed view of the international community but did not necessarily signal warmer ties with the United States.
"Broadly speaking, this reflects a general maturing of Iran's attitude toward the rest of the world," Bakhash said.
"This is a significant change, but I wouldn't say it is a breakthrough. It's another small step in Iran's efforts to normalize its relations with the international community including the United States," he said.
This month, in a European-brokered deal, Iran agreed to snap U.N. inspections of its nuclear facilities, which the United States says are a front for building an atom bomb.
The United States, which has been torn between engaging or isolating Tehran, generally takes a harder line against oil-rich Iran than its Western allies. But the Bush administration's compromise in accepting U.N. inspections was seen by some conservatives as a softening of its anti-Iran stance.
The United States, still called 'the Great Satan' by Iran's fundamentalist hardliners, broke off diplomatic relations after the 1979 Islamic revolution.
The State Department said a telephone exchange after the quake between Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage and Iran's permanent representative to the United Nations, Mohammad Javad Zarif, marked a rare but not unprecedented direct exchange between the two countries.
Early on Monday, an Air Force C-17 plane from Charleston landed at Kerman, about 100 miles northwest of Bam, carrying 68 medical experts and 40,000 pounds of blood and other medical supplies, the Pentagon's joint transportation command said in a statement.
Over the weekend, other U.S. military planes ferried dozens more rescue and relief experts and tonnes more medical and humanitarian supplies into Iran from stocks in both the United States and Kuwait, the statement said.
It added that the planes were the first military aircraft to have landed in Iran since the end of the Iranian hostage crisis in 1981. A spokesman could not say how much the assistance was worth or whether there would be more airlifts.
Deputy State Department spokesman Adam Ereli told reporters the United States was prepared to send more aid if needed.
I fail to see the offense in the headline. Iran's leadership has been calling us "The Great Satan" since the early 80's and we still provide humanitarian aid because that's the kind of people we are. Lots of irony here.
Can you honestly say you're surprised by this? Soon the Arab media, then the Slimes, then the networks will be piling on. The dwarves (especially Dean) will be out ripping President Bush for a.) Not sending enough aid, and b.) Not somehow anticipating the earthquake so that the aid could get there faster. Figure this to be Dean's attack line for tomorrow.
If you have to ask that question ...
Wasn't the last aircraft to land in Iran piloted by Jimmy Carter...
As if, by acting like human beings, (almost, as they still refuse to except aid from Israel) the Iranian Government should be congratulated for it efforts to normalize relations with the "international community".
As for the United States role in giving aid? The entire article gives no idea that the writer views the US offering aid to the people of Iran as though it were actually meritorious of recognition and praise. Just the same old "even if they did send some band-aids they are still big meanies for not softening there stance toward Iran"line of tripe whereby even actions as benevolent and alturistic as rendering aid to a sworn enemy in their time of need are looked on as "simply not enough" to the uber liberal crowd that would have us subjegate ourselves to the UN and hand over our contry lock stock and barrel to islamic terrorists.
Yeah, but let's give them some credit. They remembered to give the President his title this time. That's rare for Reuters. They usually call him "Mr. Bush." I think it took them 3 years to finally accept that he is, in fact, the President. That puts them ahead of the democrats.
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