International Outlaw Iran Calls Britain "Arrogant" Warns European Union to Butt Out!

Iran's Behavior makes it clear once again who the bad guy is here.

Iran's Ahmadinejad: Britain "arrogant"
By Borzou Daragahi and Ramin Mostaghim
Los Angeles Times
via the Seattle Times
April 1, 2007

Iran's firebrand president accused London on Saturday of turning a dispute over his government's detention of 15 British military personnel in the Persian Gulf into an international crisis.
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"The occupation forces of Britain have strayed into our waters and our border guards have captured them with courage, knowledge and generosity," said Ahmadinejad..."But instead of apologizing to the Iranian nation, the arrogant play the martyr," he said. "The arrogant powers in the world are issuing statements and delivering speeches instead of offering their apologies and expressing their mea culpa."
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At an EU conference in Bremen, Germany, British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett called the whole flare-up "regrettable," short of the apology Iran has sought.
"What we want is a way out of it. We want it peacefully, and we want it as soon as possible," Beckett said.

Britain is being accused by some conservatives like former U.S. Ambassador John Bolton of being "pathetic" in their response to the crisis. If anything, there's absolutely NO WAY the statements of British Prime Minister Blair or Foreign Minister Beckett could be called "arrogant" except by someone so deluded as to be confused with the meaning of the word.

Meanwhile, the meeting of European Union Foreign Ministers in Bremen on March 30 issued a statement:

Declaration of the EU Foreign Ministers at the meeting in Bremen on 30th March:

The European Union deplores the continued arrest of 15 British citizens by Iran on 23rd of March and underlines the European Union's unconditional support for the government of the United Kingdom.

All evidence clearly indicates that at the time of the seizure, the British Naval personnel were on a routine patrolling mission in Iraqi waters in accordance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1723. The seizure by Iranian Forces therefore constitutes a clear breach of international law.
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European Union ministers refused to agree with Britain to a freeze on exports from Iran. The EU is Iran's largest trading partner. Instead they promised that "Should the UK citizens not be released in the near future, the EU will decide on appropriate measures."

But at least they confirmed what Britain had earlier said about the position of British sailors in Iraqi territorial waters off the Al Faw peninsula. For the benefit of readers who have not seen the detailed British report, here's a summary:

MOD briefing shows Royal Navy personnel were in Iraqi waters
Ministry of Defence (U.K.)
28 Mar 07

..."This force maintains the sovereignty and integrity of Iraqi territorial waters under UN Security Council Resolution 1723, and with the approval of the Iraqi Government. The ship – and others in the coalition - maintain a presence patrolling there.
"On 23 March a boarding team consisting of seven Royal Marines and eight sailors - who were embarked in two of HMS CORNWALL's boats - conducted a routine boarding of an Indian flagged Merchant Vessel which was cooperative throughout. They investigated this vessel after witnessing her unloading cars into two barges secured alongside. Since early March the force has conducted 66 routine boardings. So the one that I'm talking about was entirely routine business, and conducted in a particular area where four other boardings have been completed recently.
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"As shown on the chart [editor: full size image here], the merchant vessel was 7.5 nautical miles south east of the Al Faw Peninsula and clearly in Iraqi territorial waters. Her master has confirmed that his vessel was anchored within Iraqi waters at the time of the arrest. The position was 29 degrees 50.36 minutes North 048 degrees 43.08 minutes East. This places her 1.7 nautical miles inside Iraqi territorial waters. This fact has been confirmed by the Iraqi Foreign Ministry.

"The Iranian government has provided us with two different positions for the incident. The first we received on Saturday and the second on Monday. As this map shows, the first of these points still lies within Iraqi territorial waters. We pointed this out to them on Sunday in diplomatic contacts.

"After we did this, they then provided a second set of coordinates that places the incident in Iranian waters over two nautical miles from the position given by HMS CORNWALL and confirmed by the merchant vessel. The two Iranian positions are just under a nautical mile apart – 1800 yards or so. It is hard to understand a reason for this change of coordinates. We unambiguously contest both the positions provided by the Iranians.

"I should just explain at this point that the boats remained connected at this point. One of the seaboats was connected via data link, which communicated its position continually to the ship where it was displayed, superimposed on an electronic chart, on a purpose built console. During the boarding this console was constantly monitored and indicated, throughout, that the boats had remained well within Iraqi territorial waters.

Are we supposed to believe that the British are lying and that Iran, which offered TWO sets of coordinates, the first being within Iraqi waters, are telling the truth? Only someone with the delusional problem discussed above would consider the Iranian explanation plausible.

In a news conference at Camp David with Brazilian President Lula President Bush had this to say:

President Bush Welcomes President Lula of Brazil to Camp David
Camp David
White House Transcript
March 31, 2007

PRESIDENT BUSH: [T]he British hostages issue is a serious issue because the Iranians took these people out of Iraqi water. And it's inexcusable behavior. And I strongly support the Blair government's attempts to resolve this peacefully. And I support the Prime Minister when he made it clear there were no quid pro quos. The Iranians must give back the hostages. They're innocent, they were doing nothing, and they were summarily plucked out of water. And it is -- as I say, it's inexcusable behavior.

President Bush's remarks answered a British complaint offered in a commentary in the Sunday Times (a British newspaper) that "Even America, our closest and staunchest ally, seems strangely silent." One would hope that message also reaches the ears of Democrats in Congress who seem more intent on assuring good photo ops with Iran's puppet Syria during House Speaker Pelosi's trip to that terrorist state than they do with the need to support our closest ally.

The Times asserts that "There is growing evidence that the kidnapping of 15 British sailors nine days ago was a premeditated act of aggression by Iran." No surprise there. And they make one further suggestion: even if Iran's trading partners in the EU cannot be persuaded to freeze economic relations with Iran, both Britain and the United States can make sure companies profiting in their dealings with Iran find themselves penalized in British and U.S. markets.

If the bottom line for European cooperation is the dollar, who has more of them? Iran or the United States and Britain?