Self-imposed Impotence

Self-imposed Impotence

by Mark Luedtke

The Mullahs in Iran must feel like they just hit, or rather stole, the jackpot. When they devised their plan to kidnap British sailors and marines, they counted on the West's self-imposed impotence as their ally, but they have to be overjoyed at the astounding lack of response to their crime. Tony Blair is threatening more talk, and he might even raise his voice. The EU will do “everything in its power,” which means they'll do nothing. The UN expressed “grave concern.” Americans are more worried about Anna Nicole's pharmacy and Democrats' spurious scandal of the week.

The British are lucky the Iranians didn't demand the surrender of the British frigate HMS Cornwall. That's what they'll demand next time. Oh wait, the British are leaving Iraq so they won't have to be at the mercy of the overwhelming might of the Iranian navy anymore. Neville Chamberlain would be proud.

The Royal Navy dominated the seas for centuries until the end of World War II. Now they can't, or won't, defend themselves from small Iranian gunboats. The Cornwall crew watched the Iranian gunboats surround and capture their mates in Iraqi waters, but they were prohibited from firing to defend them. The British government didn't want an “incident.” I wonder if they bother to carry ammunition.

The Mullahs took advantage of Britain's political vulnerability. When the Iranians kidnapped 8 British servicemen in similar fashion in 2004, the British did nothing, and Iran eventually released them. Some incorrectly point to that incident as a diplomatic success, but that failure to make Iran pay a steep price led directly to this bolder kidnapping. Iran learned it could rally the support of the Iranian people by kidnapping the servicemen, forcing them to make false confessions and apologies, and Britain's self-imposed impotence would guarantee no penalty.

And right now Iran needs to rally the support of its people, who are quickly turning against the hard-line leaders. The Iranian revolution has wreaked havoc on the Iranian economy and infrastructure. President Ahmadinejad's rhetoric and defiance over Iran's nuclear program, coupled with President Bush's strategy of continually ratcheting up the pressure on the Iraqi regime, have increased economic isolation, impoverishment, and growing dissatisfaction with the Iranian government.

So the Mullahs resorted to a proven effective tactic for bolstering local support – kidnap British servicemen and parade them in front of the cheering masses. Just days before the kidnapping, upset over the defection of several high ranking military officers and the capture of Iranian intelligence personnel in Iraq, and so confident the British wouldn't stop them, Iran even announced that it would kidnap military personnel.

But the Royal Navy was still incapable of defending its personnel, partly because the British don't have the political will to use their weapons and partly because they've gutted their navy. It's not surprising that a nation that can't summon the will to defend its servicemen also can't summon the will to outfit a fleet to defend itself. Tony Blair's labor party plans to slash the budget and ship count for a navy that is already a sad fraction of what it used to be.

And the British public has made it abundantly clear to the world that they are unwilling to fight Muslim extremists. They're pulling out of Iraq because they don't have the will to fight to win. British subjects are clamoring for the nation to pull out of Afghanistan. Appeasers have forced Tony Blair, the same Tony Blair who has led the way in sinking the once majestic Royal Navy as a credible fighting force, to resign early because he's too willing to fight for the British way of life. British leaders must practice total appeasement or lose their jobs. So much for the effectiveness of appeasement.

So we're forced to endure the surreal spectacle of British hostages paraded like circus animals on display in Tehran. Tony Blair has his hands tied while Iranians make more demands, threaten trials, and even threaten the British embassy. The Iranians explore and exploit Western weakness to find its limits and find no line we won't let them cross.

But it's unfair to attribute all this impotence to just Britain. Tony Blair is a stalwart ally compared to most Europeans. And the Iranians know very well that Democrats just voted for retreat and defeat, to force America to surrender Iraq to Iranian domination.

Ronald Reagan didn't win the release of the US hostages in the Iranian embassy by withdrawing from the region. Reagan credibly threatened to bomb Iran back into the Stone Age, so Iran freed the hostages. When Iran mined the Persian Gulf, Reagan sunk a significant part of their navy, so Iran stopped mining the Persian Gulf. History illustrates that to deter rogue nations like Iran, we must respond with strength and resolve, but the West lacks those two qualities today because of 70s-style defeatism, domestic squabbling, and a failure of leadership.

The longer Britain wastes its breath, the more powerful they make the Mullahs. To free the hostages and prevent any recurrence, Britain and the US must extract a heavy price from Iran's leaders. We should take the initiative and act with authority. A blockade to start. Bombs if necessary. Failure to punish Iran for this assault will breed ever growing aggression.