Something tells me this won't help the political situation. In spite of the population's feelings, I don't think the government of Iran will move toward better relations. What do you think? https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...ith-roses-and-selfies/?utm_term=.cb8f240178ca WorldViews American wrestlers in Iran welcomed with roses and selfies By Erin Cunningham February 16 at 10:36 AM The Americans were greeted in Iran with red roses, smiling fans and a barrage of selfies. No diplomatic crisis here. But that wasn't the case just two weeks ago. Back then in the wake of President Trump's now-frozen travel ban it didn't look like a group of U.S. wrestlers would be allowed to compete in one of the sport's most prestigious events. Now many are calling it a triumph of sports over politics. We are very happy to be here in Iran and ready to compete! Olympic gold medalist Jordan Burroughs wrote in a caption to an Instagram post on Tuesday, when the team landed in the western Iranian city of Kermanshah for the Freestyle World Cup. Today's WorldView What's most important from where the world meets Washington Sign up The accompanying photo showed Burroughs, who is leading the team, surrounded by a crowd of local fans and reporters at the airport. Greeters gave the athletes roses and took selfies with Burroughs and others. Welcome to Iran champ!!!!" one Iranian user, Saeed Mohammadi, commented on the Instagram photo. Another, Nima Jan, said he was traveling to the stadium to cheer for Burroughs. You proved that you are a noble man. This is a big chance for us, Jan said. We do not pay attention to the behavior of America's government toward Iran. The two-day tournament began Thursday, when U.S. wrestlers faced off against Georgia, Russia and Azerbaijan. But it wasn't always certain that the Americans would get to compete. Just as in years past, the athletes were at the mercy of tensions between the two governments. In late January, Trump signed an executive order temporarily banning nationals from seven Muslim-majority countries, including Iran, from entering the United States. Iranian officials responded by announcing their own entry ban on U.S. citizens, including the wrestling team that was just weeks away from traveling to Kermanshah. Wrestling is wildly popular in Iran and is widely considered as the countrys national sport. Kermanshah has also served as an epicenter for wrestling in Iran. I love Iran. I love their people, and I don't get into politics, Burroughs told the Associated Press on Feb. 3, after the team was notified they would not be able to travel. I wasn't going to make a political stance, he said. I was going to compete. Then something happened. On Feb. 5, a federal judge temporarily suspended the ban, and a higher U.S. appeals court refused the government's request to immediately reinstate the executive order. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif responded almost immediately on Twitter, saying the judicial decisions had prompted Iran's government to reverse course and grant visas to the U.S. wrestling team. The United States and Iran have not had diplomatic relations since Iranian militants seized hostages at the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1979 following Iran's Islamic revolution. But in 1998, a wrestling tournament in Iran offered a chance for a small opening. A U.S. wrestling team became the first American sports team to visit Iran since the revolution. The wrestlers received a warm reception, and the event opened the door for other U.S. sports and cultural exchanges. This World Cup is going to be a special one! American wrestler James Green tweeted on Feb. 1. We'll be bringing nations together as always, he said. No other sport does that like wrestling. Brian Murphy contributed to this post. Erin Cunningham is an Istanbul-based correspondent for The Post. She previously covered conflicts in the Middle East and Afghanistan for the Christian Science Monitor, GlobalPost and The National. Follow [MENTION=12384]Erin[/MENTION]mcunningham
I haven't been to Iran but I worked with a bloke who took a road trip with his wife through the Middle East and he told me Iranians were so welcoming that it was embarrassing. I do know a few Iranians. Some are Muslim, good, decent people. I also know one who is Bahai, also a fine man. Governments don't reflect who any of us really are.
I too have heard many reports of ordinary Iranians being the most hospitable and respectful of all other regional countries.
Thanks for your refreshingly honest, accurate & positive Post I have been to Iran, albeit briefly, & can confirm the reports of your friend & his wife. Simply put, the Iranians have always wanted good relations with the U.S. but AIPAC and other Right Wing Zionist lobbies won't allow American politicians to construct a balanced U.S. Foreign Policy that works in America's best interests. For example: Iran renews offer to help on US oil spill" https://www.liveleak.com/view?i=a59_1274982931 EXCERPT "The National Iranian Drilling Company (NIDC) has renewed its offer to assist the US in reining in an ecologically disastrous oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Mehran Alinejad, the head of special drilling operations at NIDC, pointed to the experience gained by Iranian experts in containing huge oil leaks during the eight-year Iraqi-imposed war in the 1980s, and said, "Iranian technical teams have had major achievements in oil well capping and the Gulf of Mexico oil rig is not a great feat in comparison." "There is, at any rate, an ecological disaster in the Gulf of Mexico and its negative consequences will affect everyone. That is why if we receive a suitable response from relevant [American] officials we can examine the issue and contribute to its resolution," Alinejad was quoted by IRNA as saying." CONTINUED AND: "In Iran, ‘death to America’ doesn’t mean what you think" http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/...ca-doesnt-mean-what-you-think-means/31910553/ EXCERPT ""Death to America" expresses the anger many Iranians feel about U.S. policy toward Iran, said Foad Izadi, an assistant professor of world studies at the University of Tehran. Iranians remember that the U.S. overthrew the legitimate government of Mohammad Mossadegh in 1953 and supported the dictatorial Shah who followed. The slogan "means death to American foreign policy," said Izadi. Iranians "have problems with the American government, not the American people." In fact, he said, Iranians are friendly to Americans. "When you walk around town, and people see you're an American, everyone wants to take care of you." Those two sharply different understandings of the chant parallel a wider disagreement between Iran and the U.S. over foreign policy in the Middle East. The U.S. sees Iran as an aggressive power, supporting terrorism in the region. Iran calls the U.S. a superpower that threatens military attacks on Iran and its allies."CONTINUED
