The drumbeat on Iran has gotten louder again in the past couple of days and Bill Richardson spoke out about it in an OP/ED in the WaPo today. Richardson certainly has some creds on foreign policy as former Ambassador to the UN. He’s on the mark with his call for diplomacy with Iran in my opinion and sounding a bit Kerry-esque when he says “Diplomacy is more than just talking to people.” Here’s a few quips from the OP/ED:

Saber-rattling is not a good way to get the Iranians to cooperate. But it is a good way to start a new war — a war that would be a disaster for the Middle East, for the United States and for the world. A war that, furthermore, would destroy what little remains of U.S. credibility in the community of nations.

A better approach would be for the United States to engage directly with the Iranians and to lead a global diplomatic offensive to prevent them from building nuclear weapons. We need tough, direct negotiations, not just with Iran but also with our allies, especially Russia, to get them to support us in presenting Iran with credible carrots and sticks.

No nation has ever been forced to renounce nuclear weapons, but many have chosen to do so. The Iranians will not end their nuclear program because we threaten them and call them names. They will renounce nukes because we convince them that they will be safer and more prosperous if they do that than if they don’t. This feat will take more than threats and insults. It will take skillful American diplomatic leadership.

Diplomacy is more than just talking to people. It requires speaking credibly from a position of strength. As the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, as energy secretary, as a member of Congress and as a diplomatic envoy, I have always believed in and worked to achieve tough, credible and direct negotiations with adversaries. To be tough, you need strong alliances and a strong military. And to be credible, you need a record of meaning what you say. By alienating our allies, overextending our military, making idle threats and antagonizing just about everyone, the Bush administration has undermined our diplomatic leverage.

We need to change course.

Enough of the “chest-beating and dangerous brinkmanship,” Richardson say, “It is time for alliance-building, direct engagement and tough face-to-face negotiations.”

For the United States to attack Iran without exhausting all diplomatic options would be a terrible mistake.

Richardson call for diplomacy with Iran is certainly welcomed after hearing that Deadeye Dick was in Australia doing the war dance with Australian Prime Minister John Howard. Cheney “renewed Washington’s warning to Iran that “all options” are on the table if the country continues to defy U.N.-led efforts to get Tehran to abandon its nuclear programs.”

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