U.S. Seeks Japan’s Help on Iran

The U.S. has asked Japan and a host of other allies to help prod reformists in Iran’s government to bring “under control” religious hard-liners linked with developing weapons of mass destruction and arming Palestinian extremists, senior Bush administration officials said here Monday.

In talks, President Bush asked Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to work with other nations and act as a conduit to pass on growing U.S. concerns about Tehran’s activities, said an administration official, who asked not to be named.

The goal is “to see if the people who are reasonable can get the other folks under control,” the official said.

“We want our friends to pass our concerns along, to say: ‘Look, you know, if you really want to go down a reasonable road, we’re going to be there with you at the end of that road. But we have concerns that Iran has to address,’ ” the official told reporters traveling with Bush on his six-day tour of Asia.

In his State of the Union address last month, Bush described Iran as one of three nations in an “axis of evil.” Japan could play a particularly important role in appealing to Tehran because Iran is a major trading partner and the two nations have strong diplomatic relations. Deputy Foreign Minister Mohsen Aminzadeh was in Tokyo just days before Bush arrived Sunday.

The appeal to Japan and other allies reflects the administration’s new strategy in dealing with the Islamic Republic, which is to urge reformers elected to the presidency, parliament and local councils since 1997 to stand up to hard-liners engaged in wrongdoing both at home and abroad.

A second administration official complained Monday that Iran’s “bifurcated” regime confuses the outside world. Washington has had trouble figuring out whether it is “being deceived by a good cop/bad cop act” or whether Iran is in the midst of “a genuine transformation,” he said. The United States wants to work with Japan and other nations “to make the real Iran stand up--whether it’s the Iran of rounding up Al Qaeda suspects on the one hand or the Iran of weapons of mass destruction on the other,” the official added.

Iran has an unusual power structure in that for every traditionally elected branch of government, there is a parallel body dominated by religious conservatives, who have veto power over everything from who can run for office to what legislation is allowed.

Washington has seen some signs that its pressure is producing a reaction. After the U.S. complained that Iran had not acted to stop Al Qaeda members crossing the border from Afghanistan, Tehran announced last week that it had arrested about 150 operatives loyal to Osama bin Laden, although Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi acknowledged Monday that there were no Al Qaeda members among them. About 70 are children and 40 are women, he said.

The United States has received “considerable support” from allies in its new strategy toward Iran, the second official said.

The approach underscores the fact that, despite Bush’s tough talk, the administration is still searching for ways to deal with Tehran.