The Done Deal

"I decided that a strong, confident America could advance our national security by engaging directly with the Iranian government. We've seen the result."
"Whereas Iran was steadily expanding its nuclear program, we have now cut off every single path that Iran could have used to build a bomb."
U.S. President Barack Obama

"Today we are in an atmosphere where we can have political, economic and legal interaction with the world to the benefit of our national interests."
"We believe in our nation's success."
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani

What President Barack Obama characterizes as a victory for American diplomacy, President Rouhani expresses as a "glorious victory" for, of course, Tehran's ongoing agenda the details of which are Iran's alone. For the glorious victory that President Rouhani hailed was a gift from the world for the "patient nation of Iran". If Iranian leaders know anything, they know that their long-term strategy calls for outlasting the patience of those nations in the international community who think no further than their own governments' legacy.

The Islamic Republic of Iran considers its strategy through the lens of historical and heritage precedent, and it is determined to achieve what has been long lost; itself as a powerful colossus of influence in the Islamic world whose control of its immediate geography represents the first order of business, and what is to follow will simply lead on from there. They have the confidence of what can be achieved through the juncture of divine intervention and the kind of intimidation that follows a nuclear arsenal controlled by a theocracy to whom the end-of-days has been entrusted.

"We seek to rationally solve regional problems. But meanwhile, our government and people will never accept wrong and undiplomatic actions. If it is necessary, we will give a strong response. We hope the Saudi authorities can learn lessons from what has happened and take actions that benefit both its own and regional interests", Rouhani cautioned his country's adversarial Sunni opposite. As an Aryan Persian Shiite country, the Islamic Republic of Iran seeks suzerainty over the Arab Sunni Muslim majority.

True, this is an internal Middle East/Muslim challenge which its disparate parts must settle on their own. The release of billions of treasury funds to Iran with the finalization of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action will most certainly enable Iran to get on with its consolidation of Shiite power, encompassing Yemen, Lebanon [Hezbollah], Iraq and Syria to form the bloc that the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Iran's Republican National Guard corps feel will give them the upper hand denoting a final destabilization of the entire geography.

Events have conspired happily for Iran's influence, to bring Russia as well into the picture, fighting alongside the Republican National Guard al Quds group, Hezbollah, and Iran's Shiite militias in Syria to secure the Syrian regime's Alawite Shiite complexion. Iran's chaos-fomenting agenda will simply proceed now with the release of the estimated whopping $100-billion to enable it to fund the Houthis in Yemen, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and even once again dole out funding to Hamas after a renewed reconciliation.

The restive minority Shiite population in Bahrain, in Saudi Arabia and Qatar can hope for their share.

Iran's proxy militias throughout the region will hugely benefit from the sanctions release, so Iran does in fact win hugely, both in now proceeding with its nuclear program, with the agreement's time-lapse within a decade and most certainly less, and in restoring its financial capacity to support its regional power ambitions. The demoralization that has set in among the majority Sunni nations has loosened the power of their confederation, the announced Saudi coalition notwithstanding.

Many of the named supporters of the coalition are less than enthused about the proposed bloc offensive; lip service without the effort may be the final result.

Leaving the most impressively motivated, aggressive and best organized group between the Sunni-Shia rivalry hands-down to Iran's Shiite crescent. As a theocratic state propelled by a powerful ideological/political/religious movement their motivation aligned with their experience in subversion of their opponents seems to give them the geo-strategic advantage in the Middle East competition for power.

And they have the United States and other members of the P5+1 to thank for their new celebrated position.

Have Iran's ayatollahs thanked President Obama sufficiently to express their gratitude? Will the return of a few Iranian-American hostages as a gesture of gratitude suffice?