Iran Hostage Diplomacy, By Jamil Shawwa

We should add a new diplomatic term to the glossary of diplomacy and that is the hostage diplomacy. Iran since it's revolution in 1979 has resorted to all kinds of blackmailing to get it's way. It started with the US embassy seizure and the hostage taking to today's event of kidnapping 15 British sailors that Iran claimed drifted into it's waters. Iran not only is using those sailors to continue to engage the west but also in making political statements that do not relate to the incident and I mean making the sailors issue a statement asking the US and Britain to withdraw from Iraq. Amazing, what this has to do with the claim that the sailors were in it's regional waters. The west has been accommodating Iran for some reason but the message we are sending is horrible. We are telling the world that it's a legitimate way to take hostages and it's ok to be a terrorist because then and only then you will be eligible to sit with us on the negotiating table. The credentials for this honor, negotiations, is to be a terrorist. This is the message that Iran is sending.