US Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns says Iran is sending weapons to the Taliban. It is the first time (to my knowledge) a senior American official has made such a claim.

The likes of Tony Blair have said “elements” within the Iranian regime were sending arms to Afghanistan, but this looks like a direct accusation against the government as a whole.

What really gets to me though is that the US is busy arming Sunni Arab groups to fight al-Qaida in Iraq.

“(Iran is)  a country that’s trying to flex its muscles,” Burns said, “but in a way that’s injurious to the interests of just about everybody else in the world. I think it’s a major miscalculation.”

And how the US flexes its muscles is in everybody’s best interests? Arming militants to fight militants is a perfect calculation?

Iran has denied aiding the Taliban, saying it makes no sense for a Shi’ite regime to back a Sunni group.

With patience already frayed on both sides regarding Iran’s nuclear program, Burns’ comments are only adding fuel to the fire. Sometimes I wish politicians would just shut the fuck up.

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