Iran Letter Opens Window Onto Muslim World

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, speaks at a press conference after meetings with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the Presidential Palace Wednesday May 10, 2006 in Jakarta, Indonesia. Ahmadinejad said his country has cooperated with international agencies, saying Iran has allowed "2,000 man-hours" of inspections by the IAEA and that program was "totally peaceful", and suggested that concerns raised over nuclear proliferation were merely an excuse to pressure his country, calling them "a big lie."(AP Photo/Ed Wray) (Ed Wray - AP)

But the two governments can't bridge the gap, in part because of mistrust, in part because there are true policy differences, in part because a hard-liner now runs Iran.

Thus, while Ahmadinejad's letter reflects widespread Muslim thought on issues such as Palestinian rights and Abu Ghraib, he goes well beyond that.

On other issues, common ground _ for good reason _ is next to impossible.

Ahmadinejad does not mention his country's nuclear program, except to say that Iran should have the right to make scientific progress. He ignores valid Western fears that Iran's leaders have lied about the program in the past and are trying for a weapon. On the nuclear issue, many ordinary Iranians support their president.

Ahmadinejad also hints that there was a U.S. government-led conspiracy behind the Sept. 11 attacks, and that the Holocaust that killed 6 million Jews never happened. Most educated Muslims, whether in Arab lands or Iran, don't truly put credence in or act on such conspiracy theories.

But such ideas do hold sway among extremists.

If he is one of them, as he appears to be _ if he believes the Holocaust never happened and won't budge on the nuclear issue _ it's going to be nearly impossible for anybody in the West ever really to talk with Iran's president.

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Sally Buzbee is the AP's Chief of Middle East News, based in Cairo.

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On the Net: http://hosted.ap.org/specials/interactives/_documents/ahmadinejad0509.pdf