DON'T LIMIT IRAN INQUIRY TO THE HOSTAGE CRISIS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP91-00901R000500150046-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 20, 2005
• Sequence Number: 46
• Publication Date: January 29, 1981
• Content Type: NSPR

Approved For Release 2006/01/12: CIA-RDP91-00901RO
A , _c L l~,t,~ ; THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
O=~` 29 January 1981
Don't ran Inquiry
to the Hostage-
Crisis
dry ttitorton M. Mncli'acke
tee's.Iraii inquiry apparently wilt focus onl
the hostage cri ii'o t1y but I. think it should
be-much broader: It should~encompass.ourq
irvgecenE- experience - with Iran, : Tin-,
ith 1953,-whenr the late shah was xe~
g-a
,~.
_
stored to his tlfroite' with- thee:assistance off"
the United States. The Iran trauma is the
product of mistakes by several Presidents,
not just Jimmy Carter, and we need to un-
-derstand what they were, the better not: to:
make them again:'
Andy we could:.-make them "again. There
un-
area at least a half-dozen,important co
tries in- the world governed by authoritar-
ian regimes friendly to the United States.
,What should the-U.S do if Ferdinand Mar-
cos gets into troublewith the people of the
Philippines? Or President Chon, with' the
South: Koreans?':There are other Somozas
in Latin America."and other shahs in the
Middle East.. The lessons of Iran will not:
necessarily apply exactly in- other places.
But without having looked at the Iran ex-
perience closely, we won't know the differ
ences from the similarities.
We shouldn't repeat the mistake we
made after the Vietnam war. Congress and
the Executive Branch were so anxious-to
avoid an "orgy of recrimination;'. that to.
this day no one has conducted a searching.
inquiry into the lessons of,Vietnarn,. Yet-,
the trauma festers in the national subcon-
scious. It causes some Americans- includ-;
ing Jimmy Carter, Cyrus Vance and many'
armed conflict under almost any circutri
inglythey can't wait for a chance to send
in the Marines in order to prove that we
can whup somebody. I suspect, if the Rea-
gait arlministratiort intervenes in El Salva-
dor, it will be as much for that reason as
out of cool consideration of the gational 'ui-
.terest.. Alexander Haig. should have been-
asked, at his confirmation hearings 'what.`
lessons he draws from Vietnam-but . he.
wasn't. The Senate should correct that mis-
take with President Reagan's other na-
tional security appointees.
the dominant foreign policy experience for
The shah's regime and U.S. complicity
in it. Should the U.S: have depended on
Iran to guard our interests. in the Persian
Gulf, as the Nixon Doctrine provided, or
should we have done the job ourselves?
Did our policy and the weapons we sold to.
the shah make him a megalomaniac out of
touch with his own people? - What. was the
extent of corruption and torture in Iran,
and-could:we have done more to stop it?
U intelligence ca abilities There
are persistent reports that. the shah" de-
manded, And we agreed, that the CIA
would conduct no domestic operations
within Iran, but would, depend on intelli-
gence provided by SAVAK.'Our diplomats.
reportedly were under similar orders-to
stay away from the shags opposition.
Henry Kissinger and former CIA .Director
(and U.S. Ambassador in' Tehran) Richard
Helms. deny there were any such restric--
tions,-but Carter administration officials
insist there were. As a result, they say, we
failed to understand the depth of public op-
Position to the shah and couldn't even warn
him. Reportedly, we still have'. similar
agreements with other shaky friends. I
think it would prove a resounding lesson of
Iran that too few of our diplomats abroad
are fluent in the-local language and that
too many lack contact with the local popu-
lation,. For one of the hostages to complain
of brutality because 'he was deprived of
meals prepared by the ambassador's chef,
and had to eat Iranian food suggests that
our embassies. (like our Army) are exces-
sively staffed with support. personnel.
a
Public understanding. Except for the
McNeil-Lehrer program on PBS and, much
later, ABC's'.'Nightline,'' American televi-
sion .treated the l; ,ail crisis either as a
-freak show, featuring self-flagellants and.
fist-wavers, 'or as 'a soap opera. It's riot the
Senate's business to inquire why. The net-
works should ask themselves. The plubhc
should demand that they do.
The shahs fall. Probably. in. t}etro---
spect, the U.S_ should have given unstint-
ing political support to the shah during his;;f
days of maximum crisis. It seems- Meat;,;
that. equivocation earned us no credit with-
Khomeini. But? should we have encouraged ~
the shah to jail or kill his opponents. b r the'!
thousands, if necessary, to, stay in power? '?,
During the shah's final days, -Pres den;. -!
Carter sent Gen- Robert E. Huyser to I ran?.;,!
Was it to foment a pro-=I.S.. military cdup
or prevent. one? Which should it haver
been? I'm confident that the Senate will look''
into such other questions as: Shout we,t,
have let the shah- into this country? S oukt.'r-
we have negotiated when the hos age;sF
were seized.-or gone to war? How were the';
hostages treated? Did President CartIr ne? .
gotiate a good agreement, and. should- we-
live up to it?
But those are the obvious questions. We-
need a deeper inquiry into the Iran expert ''__
ence. The purpose should not be tot dis.'z
cover "who lost Iran?" but 'how to aver
Saudi Arabia?"
Mr. Kondrarke 'is erecutit;e editor" of~r
The New Republic magazine. He wily con
tribute to the "Viewpoint" colurrmn ',urn ?u!.'
regular basis.
reatlyunderstanc pptt ~ O"prR &, a 2006/01/12 : CIA-RDP91-00901R000500150046-0
 STAT
LONDON DAILY 1ELEGIAPH
Approved For Release201>/.1. :101A-RDP91-00901 R00050015 046-0
Nt0n 0
f ru
ex-CIA
-HE . Iranians , had and 'is in `Unit
d
m
e
States ar
y
enjoyed . their 14 warehouses. Iran says it needs
months of bargaining ~~'ith the supplies to-help fight the l
'America, Mr Richard war with Iraq; "'':? ? 11
Helms,: the former CIAMr Helms is the first, proms
director, said last iiright.. -neat American to voice unease,
Air Helms,, who was United the euphoria. in Washing*
d ton about the hostage deal.
States Ambassador to-, Iran H
not
e iDs
while the late Shah was in l
expected to
be'the i
ast
r
Kiin
f
. ,ssger,ormerSec -
power are , said
tradersaidf and ]3 ruasica lv they retary of State, has said
gmakers_ recently that 'the, United State
d they have, nenjoyed;th
'
is
hd
.a no business to "bargain ?;in
"The::act remains, thai the the first place _with a nation
Iranian .igovernment "has paid that lead violated
international
no price 'for holding the law by holding diplomats cap- ;
hostages-, -in.- an -official act of true
terrorism.:; It has" set a bad It was a--cardinal principle
..precedent,to: make ?it_seem we of his 'era at the State Depart
'are an easy:touch :'-'? menu not?.??to i.neu
Mr..He]ms ; feared'that 'the kidna precedent Administration's 'hand- . set thate was Slikelyr toe encou-
ling. of ..the crisis was, not. age future terrorist acts against
going to help"
tithe" work of Americans
other foreign. service; officers.,, Vice - President "V a I t e r
In, the past. year America had nsondale, hasr `.defended' the
made " some mistakes in trying : Carter Administration, sayin
to h arm: up- to' Iran " and " one 1Ye've got some ,right here to
-of-the; ninst difficult problems" Put. these. hostages.. and their
was being passed to the incom- families at a very-high priority l
ing President \tie want them-: home We
11
This was ",what to do about promised the Iranians that ?if
Iran, especially ? . view of they'd let these -hostages come I
Ayatollah Khomeini's continued home, we would unfreeze
anti-Americana stancethese funds... is
I don't think that is im-.
spare-
MilitarY. are parts proper at - all under the
Mr Reagan, who has scorned circumstances.":,
the Iranian leaders as. "kid- However,, several leading
l
nappers and barbarians," has to inbtonaparecalreadyts in predicting
make an early decision on the predicting
sending that once the excitement about
b of $400 million worth of the ., situation :Siibsdes.
spare military - parts` already' Americans 'mill "find they have t
ordered and paid -for by Iran. 'paid a high price in terms of
The equipment : was em-' prestige and strength -in the
bargoed because of the hostages.. world. ,, -
Approved For Release 2006/01/12 : CIA-RDP91-00901 R000500150046-0