(Washington D.C. Oval Office → Tehran via Secure Line → New York UN Lounge)
Scene I: Washington D.C. — The Pragmatist & The Prophet
(Kissinger, 102, arrives via private jet; Trump, 78, awaits with JD Vance. A monsoon brews outside.)
1 Kissinger (adjusting spectacles):
“Donald, Iran’s nuclear ‘breakout time’ now measures weeks, not years. Sanctions alone won’t deter a civilization that survived Mongol hordes. We must offer carrots disguised as sticks.”
2 Trump (leaning forward):
“Henry, you’re softer than Pelosi! I told Bibi—we’ll glass Qom if they blink. But Pezeshkian’s ghostwriters keep sending me… poems.”
3 Kissinger (smirking):
“Ah, Persian poetry—the ultimate asymmetric warfare. You bomb reactors; they quote Rumi. Let me handle Tehran.”
Scene II: Tehran — The Poet-President’s Gambit
(President Masoud Pezeshkian stands before Isfahan’s Khaju Bridge, reciting into a crackling speakerphone.)
4 Pezeshkian (in Persian):
“بشنو از نی چون حکایت می کند / از جدایی ها شکایت می کند…”
(“Listen to the reed flute’s lament / Its song of separations unspent…” — Rumi)
5 Trump (perplexed):
“Is this Farsi? Sounds like my grandkid’s yoga playlist. Translate!”
6 Kissinger (eyes narrowing):
“He’s quoting Rumi’s Masnavi. A Sufi metaphor—nuclear centrifuges as reed flutes? Clever. They’re mocking your ‘maximum pressure’.”
7 Pezeshkian (softly):
“می خور که زیر این طربخانه فلک / هیچ کار از کاروان‌ها درنک…”
(“Drink wine, for under this celestial tent / No caravan escapes Fate’s dissent…” — Omar Khayyam)
8 Trump (leaning back):
“Wine? Now they’re toasting sanctions? I like this guy!”
Scene III: New York UN Lounge — The Trance
(Rain drums the glass ceiling. Trump sips Diet Coke, pupils dilated.)
9 Kissinger (whispering):
“Careful, Donald. Persian mystics weaponize ambiguity. Their ‘wine’ is spiritual surrender.”
10 Pezeshkian (chanting):
“در ازل پرتو حسنت ز تجلی دم زد / عشق پیدا شد و آتش به همه عالم زد…”
(“In eternity’s dawn, Your beauty sparked Love’s flame / Setting all existence ablaze with Your name…” — Hafez)
11 Trump (slack-jawed):
“Whoa… that ‘Hafiz’ guy’s got fireworks in his mouth. Melania’s gonna love this at Mar-a-Lago.”
12 Kissinger (grim):
“Focus! They’re invoking waḥdat al-wujūd—unity of existence. Your ‘Art of the Deal’ is child’s play here.”
13 Pezeshkian (louder):
“ما ز بالاییم و بالا میرویم / ما ز دریاییم و دریا میرویم…”
(“We descend from heights, yet climb higher / We emerge from oceans, yet dive deeper…” — Rumi)
14 Trump (entranced):
“Henry… the walls are… glowing. Is this a nuke?”
15 Kissinger (sighing):
“No. It’s ‘ishq—divine love. They’ve outmaneuvered us with… ghazals.”
Scene IV: The Bridge of AUM
(Trump stands at the UN’s East River terrace, monsoon winds whipping his tie.)
16 Pezeshkian (final verse):
“همه عالم تن است و ایران دل / نیست گوینده زین قیاس خجل…”
(“The world is a body; Iran its heart / Let no poet shame this sacred art…” — Ferdowsi)
17 Trump (murmuring):
“Iran’s the heart…? But I called them ‘terrorists’ on Fox!”
18 Kissinger (placing a hand on his shoulder):
“Congratulations, Donald. You’ve been… enlightened. Now, about those F-35s over Isfahan—”
19 Trump (interrupting):
“Cancel the strike. Let’s… build a Persian poetry theme park in Riyadh. With golf courses!”
20 Pezeshkian (laughing):
“از قضا، کار جهان، چون گذرد؟ / خوش باش و می نوش که عمریست دراز…”
(“How shall the world’s affairs ever conclude? / Be merry, drink wine—life’s river eludes…” — Khayyam)
The line disconnects. Trump stares at the storm, humming Rumi. Kissinger mutters about “postmodern deterrence.”
Epilogue: The Unwritten Verse
The next day, Trump tweets:
“Iran’s GREAT! Like, really deep. Maybe we’ll rename the ‘Axis of Evil’ the ‘Axis of Awesome Poems’? Henry says no. SAD!”
: Webpage 6 details Kissinger’s stance on Iran’s nuclear diplomacy as a test for U.S.-Europe unity.
: Webpages 9-11 provide Rumi, Khayyam, and Hafez poems used by Iran’s leader.
: Webpage 7 includes Kissinger’s quotes on controlling narratives, mirrored in the dialogue’s tension between pragmatism and mysticism.