Zarif’s Diplomatic Failure: Live on Facebook

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif’s diplomatic power has been stopped in its tracks on a mountain pass between Iran and Pakistan, paralyzed by the announcement that one of Iran’s kidnapped border guards has been executed. 

Jaish-ul-Adl (Army of Justice), an armed extremist group linked to Al-Qaeda, which kidnapped five Iranian soldiers in early February, announced that they had killed Jamshid Danaeifar on 24 March.

As a result, the pass has now been dubbed “5-1”, referring to the number of kidnapped soldiers, minus one. According to a statement issued by the group, the murder was an act of retaliation for the earlier death of one its members.

The Iranian public reacted with anger and frustration: many went on to Facebook, posting messages like “Leave 5+1; Take 5-1,” taunting Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif for what they viewed as his inadequate diplomatic efforts to free the soldiers. “5+1”, of course, refers to the P5+1, the international group of countries that has been involved in nuclear negotiations with Iran.

In the past 24 hours, 90 per cent of the 600 messages posted on Zarif’s Facebook page have criticized or mocked the foreign minister. 

Their demands are numerous, and range from replacing the smiling photograph with something more somber, to encouraging him to hide or block out his comments and posts until diplomatic efforts with Pakistan bear results, to calling for him to launch military action against Pakistan to free the four remaining soldiers. One common taunt refers to Zarif’s recurring back pain, which was widely reported during nuclear negotiations last October.  “Dear Dr. Zarif,” commented one Facebook user, “The back of Jamshid’s family is broken. How is yours?” The commentator went on to say that an innocent soldier had been killed because of the incompetence of Zarif and people like him.

High Expectations

When the foreign minister initially joined Facebook, he regularly responded to posts by Iranian citizens and commentators, leading to high expectations of how he would embrace his online presence. Now that his online activities have slowed somewhat, he has met with significant criticism: “Dear Dr: You reported from Geneva moment by moment,” one Facebook user wrote. “Now we expect the same about securing the release of the four soldiers (not five any more).” This criticism highlights the very real difficulty that Zarif faces when it comes to managing expectations.

The problem, of course, is not the foreign minister's alone. President Rouhani’s entire administration faces the same challenges over expectations concerning political, economic and diplomatic crises.

Zarif’s emphasis on successful negotiations with the P5+1 world powers has now been turned against him. The Iranian people want him to apply the same diplomatic prowess when dealing with the Pakistani government and the Jaish-ul-Adl group. “A foreign minister who cannot do anything for five captured soldiers is useless, even if he conducts the most successful nuclear negotiations,” wrote one person.

The Pakistani authorities have accused the Iranian government of not doing enough, further igniting arguments taking place on Facebook: “Mr. Zarif, They have martyred the flesh of our flesh, but has nothing changed for authorities like you?." And: “Pakistan’s foreign ministry said today that the Iranian side is not pursuing the matter at all! Is this true? If it is, shame on me for the vote that I cast.”

Some users, however, have followed a different tack. Their expectations are lower, as one of the posted messages reveals: “I expected you to commiserate with the mourning family [of the slain soldier], not as foreign minister, but as a conscientious person who cares about people.” The relative silence of the foreign ministry and the absolute silence of Zarif has disheartened many of his supporters. “As an Iranian, I can be patient if the economy is not doing well,” one wrote, ”but I cannot take it when the Iranian authorities are indifferent to the fate of Iranian citizens. It is a shame and a disgrace.”

Some have asked him to at least do something to return the soldier’s body to Iranian soil: “Please send somebody to get his body. We are poor, but we will share the cost.”

“Learn From Israel!”

One Facebook member tried to shame the foreign minister by citing how the Israeli government has acted in similar situations: “When Hizbollah took two Israeli soldiers hostage, Israel destroyed a nursery with rockets...when Hamas took one of its soldiers, it released 1027 Palestinian prisoners...we did not attack anything and we did not release anybody. Zarif only made a phone call to Pakistan.”

Interesting to note, however, is the increase in the number of religious fundamentalists who have apparently started using Facebook. They criticize Zarif’s “smiling diplomacy” and his statements about American military might, defending former President Ahmadinejad’s record. “The man who captured commandos on the sea, who could grab a pebble in the air, and who could free diplomats on land, he is gone now.”

Zarif and Rouhani have faced harsh criticism on Facebook, but criticism has also been leveled at Iranian national television and radio. Many people have reproached the Iranian government and the Revolutionary Guards, saying they care more about the lives of Palestinians, Lebanese or Syrians than those of Iranians. They have also challenged claims by Iranian authorities that they can confront the United States in a military capacity, pointing out that they are unable to put up a significant challenge against an armed group.

As of now (8pm, Tehran Time) Foreign Minister Zarif has failed to post any responses to this unprecedented wave of criticism. But, in any case, it is unlikely that any answer would satisfy his critics. It seems that, for now, his diplomacy has been indefinitely stalled, unable to move forward in difficult mountain terrain.