So the Islamic Republic of Iran, after years of stalling, foot-dragging, and outright deception, finally allows UN nuclear inspectors to visit its secret sites. British intelligence, in a rare moment of candour, confirms compliance. This is being hailed as a victory for diplomacy.
I call it a sign of decadence. Remember the Fall of Rome? The barbarians at the gates were eventually let in because the empire had grown too soft to fight.
Here, Iran is not the barbarian: it is the exhausted empire. Years of sanctions, internal dissent, and a war that drained its coffers have left the mullahs with no choice but to bow. This is not a peace deal; it is a surrender.
The Victorian Era, my dear readers, taught us that empires collapse when they lose the will to power. Iran has lost that will. The inspectors will find what they want, and the world will move on.
But the lesson is clear: negotiation from a position of strength is the only language the West understands. We have not learned it. We celebrate compliance while Iran buys time to rebuild its programme.
Mark my words: this is a pause, not a termination. The real war, the one for the soul of the Middle East, continues. And we are losing it with our naivety.
