The U.S. Is Not Seeking War with Iran - 2002-04-06

It was not a coincidence that President Bush included Iran in his famous statement about the axis of evil. This explanation was provided by a senior U.S. official shortly after President Bush's warning to Iran on Thursday regarding the need to stop supporting terrorism, to reporters covering the White House. The official, who wished to remain anonymous, said: 'We have consistently condemned Iran's support for terrorist organizations, and that is why Iran is mentioned in our list of state sponsors of terrorism. We continue to raise this issue, and we are not seeking war with Iran.' In his comments, this senior U.S. official also elaborated on President Bush's assertion about the necessity of addressing the aspirations of the Iranian people for freedom. He stated that there is currently a debate in Iran among those who feel their path is wrong. Sixty-five percent of the Iranian population are young people under the age of twenty-five. They know there are problems in how their country is being run. The debate is between them and those who continue to govern the country from an unelected position, leading it in the wrong direction. For this reason, we are trying to engage with elements within Iranian society who understand that if they set aside terrorism and stop producing weapons of mass destruction, life will improve for them. President Bush, while offering solutions to end the ongoing violence in the Middle East, stated: 'Iran's arms shipments and support for terrorism are pouring oil on the fire of the Middle East conflict and must be stopped.' Donald Rumsfeld, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, also elaborated for three consecutive days last week on a shipment of weapons sent from Iran to Palestinians, which was seized on the Karine A ship, and the facilities that Al-Qaeda terrorists benefited from while fleeing Afghanistan in Iran. On the third day of his remarks about Iran, Mr. Rumsfeld said, 'Iran is a country that facilitated the shipment of arms on the Karine A and provided facilities for Al-Qaeda members to escape through that country. Iran is a country that suppresses its people and lies to them about being complicit with Al-Qaeda. In my opinion, it is beneficial for the world to know these matters.' The Associated Press reported from Washington that Abu Zarkawi, who is among the twenty-five main leaders of Al-Qaeda, is one of the leaders of this terrorist network who is believed to have fled to Iran after the start of U.S. airstrikes last October. Iran denies any connection with fleeing Al-Qaeda members.