Everybody is right and wrong

As I prepare for my upcoming trip to the Middle East, including Iran, the current kerfuffle over the detention of 15 British soldiers and sailors by Iran has caused a bit of unease in our group. It doesn't take much research to determine that the situation is a lot less clear than the governments involved would have one believe. Shortly after the incident British Royal Navy Commodore Nick Lambert described the situation as follows: " There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that they were in Iraqi territorial waters. Equally the Iranians may claim that they were Iranian territorial waters. The extent and definition of territorial waters in this part of the world is very complicated." Commodore Lambert has not been heard from since. A quick browse of the book with the intimidating title of "Continental Shelf Delimitation and Related Maritime Issues in the Persian Gulf" makes the description "very complicated" seem like an understatement. Controversial former British diplomat Craig Murray added to the flap by posting an article on his web site under the title "Fake Maritime boundaries". (Click here) The 15 soldiers and sailors have become pawns in the game of power politics. The Iranians are trying to send a message of "don't mess with me". As an Iranian blogger pointed out: "We probably could have avoided all this with the application of a little technology, namely a bull horn. Surely a country that can master nuclear technology can handle this technology." In this day of diplomacy by media statements a little quiet diplomacy would help resolve a murky situation where nobody is right. I guess as long as everybody is just yelling at each other and not shooting at each other our trip will still happen. Lets hope so.