What do you think of the Bush Admnistrations goal of promoting democracy throughout the Middle East?
What can be said very easily is that this is and should be a homegrown process — not only in Iran but everywhere in our region. You cannot impose democracy. You cannot impose your image of good governance on any country. They need to develop it themselves so that people can feel ownership of the process. That’s the only way. This needs to be the case in Iraq as well. We believe that the U.S. certainly should not and cannot impose its image on the Iraqi people. There should be a process where the Iraqis themselves determine their own future and establish their own institutions. I think this is a general principle. Q: Do you have any hope that Iran can renew a dialogue with Washington? A: We’ve had channels of communication open to the U.S., and we continue to use those channels. But dialogue would require a readiness to understand…. [Still,] I believe that in the final analysis some type of rationality will prevail in Washington. [The current policy] is bound to lead to great tension
