US Cools War Rhetoric With Iran

Washington cooled war rhetoric with Iran yesterday, calling sanctions "diplomacy" that "in no way, shape or form" anticipate force. The sanctions are "more a demonstration of restraint than a signal that we’re going to war," echoed one US expert. But the US move did irk one observer, Putin, who said they "make the situation worse" and could lead to war.

US statecraft misses the mark in other ways, the New York Times reports: Countries will likely ignore the sanctions, and Iran will shrug off Condi's offer to “meet with my Iranian counterpart anytime, anywhere"—an invite that demands Iran nix uranium enrichment first. But Bush did get support from Israel, whose US diplomat trumpeted the sanctions as “a major diplomatic step." (More Iran stories.)