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On one point everyone who knows Shultz is in agreement: whatever and whenever he discovered about the arms transfers, the information dismayed him -- for good reason. Shultz has been the most vehement promoter of the Administration's official no-deals-with-terrorists policy. He has been in charge of Operation Staunch, an Administration effort to persuade both friends and adversaries not to sell arms to Iran. He has pushed that effort with deep personal conviction, going so far as to urge Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze during their frequent meetings to try to reduce arms sales to Iran by countries allied to Moscow. He had little effect, however. North Korea, a Soviet ally, has been among Iran's biggest sources of weapons. In addition, whether Shultz tried and failed to stop the U.S.-sanctioned shipment of arms to Iran or was kept in the dark about it, his stature as the chief architect of American foreign policy under President Reagan has been undermined.
Ever the loyal Administration soldier, Shultz last week permitted himself no public criticism of the dealings with Iran, but made little attempt to defend them either. He said that in his view the "policy of not negotiating for hostages is the right policy," carefully expressing no opinion on whether it is any longer the policy actually in effect. Like everyone else in his department, the Secretary referred all questions about Iran to the White House, but unlike others, he openly expressed dissatisfaction with the White House order that he do so. Said Shultz bluntly: "I don't particularly enjoy it. I like to say what I think about something."
Whatever he thinks, it will be largely up to Shultz to explain and defend the dealings with Iran to American allies. He had to start last week in, oddly enough, Paris, where he had gone after a meeting with Shevardnadze in Vienna. Shultz was in France to discuss arms-control problems and other policy matters with French leaders, including Premier Jacques Chirac. The U.S. has been critical of France for not joining a British attempt to boycott Syria diplomatically as a terrorist nation and for its haste in negotiating a deal to return to Tehran Iranian funds that had been frozen in France. The night before their Friday meeting, Chirac, who was visiting Spain, made clear French resentment of what it regards as hypocritical American nagging. Said Chirac, with heavy sarcasm: "France has not negotiated and will not negotiate with terrorist groups and takers of hostages. I don't know what others do, including those who want to teach lessons to everybody else."
His comments were a touch disingenuous, since France has in fact been negotiating with Syria about French hostages held in Lebanon, but it was a sample of what the Administration can expect to hear in growing volume from its allies. British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher frostily instructed her subordinates to refrain from inquiring about what the U.S. was up to in its dealings with Iran. She does not want to know. As if that did not indicate enough displeasure, a top British official called foreign reporters to a briefing at which he repeated that British policy is not to negotiate with terrorists.