Editing Axis of evil (section)

==Criticism==
Iran and Iraq fought the long [[Iran–Iraq War]] in the 1980s under basically the same leadership as that which existed at the time of Bush's speech, leading some to believe that the linking of the nations under the same banner was misguided. Others argued that each of the three nations in the "axis of evil" had some special characteristics which were obscured by grouping them together. [[Anne Applebaum]] wrote about the debate over North Korea's inclusion in the group.<ref name="slate-2002">{{cite magazine|title=North Korea: Threat or Menace?|author=Anne Applebaum|url=http://www.slate.com/id/2061973/|magazine=Slate|date=February 12, 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070525194445/http://www.slate.com/id/2061973/ |archive-date=May 25, 2007|access-date=June 16, 2012}}</ref>

In the days after the [[September 11 attacks]], [[Ryan Crocker]] — who would later become the [[United States ambassador to Iraq]] from 2007 to 2009 — and other senior U.S. State Department officials flew to [[Geneva]] to meet secretly with representatives of the government of Iran. For several months, Crocker and his Iranian counterparts cooperated on capturing [[Al Qaeda]] operatives in the region and fighting the [[Taliban]] government in Afghanistan. These meetings stopped after the "Axis of Evil" speech hardened Iranian attitudes toward cooperating with the U.S.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/09/30/130930fa_fact_filkins|title=Dexter Filkins: Qassem Suleimani, the Middle East's Most Powerful Operative|author=Dexter Filkins|date=September 30, 2013|magazine=The New Yorker|access-date=December 18, 2013|url-status = live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140125090341/http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/09/30/130930fa_fact_filkins|archive-date=January 25, 2014}}</ref>

Also, immediately after the attacks, the Iranian President [[Mohammad Khatami]]—in a message to the American people—showed sympathy with the victims<ref name=CNN-20011112>{{cite news|url= https://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/meast/11/12/khatami.interview.cnna/|title= Iranian president condemns September 11 attacks|last= Amanpour|first= Christiane|website= CNN|access-date= January 16, 2024|archive-date= January 16, 2024|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240116134333/https://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/meast/11/12/khatami.interview.cnna/|url-status= live}}</ref> and the Iranian people took to mosques and streets to pray and show their condolences.<ref name=RadioFarda-20110911>{{cite news|url=https://www.radiofarda.com/a/f12_us_state_department_thanks_iranian_sympathy_with_sept_11_victims_in_2001/24324962.html|title=us state department thanks iranian sympathy with sept 11 victims in 2001|website=RadioFarda|access-date=January 16, 2024|archive-date=April 5, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240405203419/https://www.radiofarda.com/a/f12_us_state_department_thanks_iranian_sympathy_with_sept_11_victims_in_2001/24324962.html|url-status=live}}</ref> None of the terrorists involved in 9/11 were citizens of the three nations Bush cited.<ref name=politico-20190129>{{cite news |url=https://www.politico.com/story/2019/01/29/bush-axis-of-evil-2002-1127725 |title=President Bush cites 'axis of evil,' Jan. 29, 2002 |last=Glass |first=Andrew |website=Politico |date=January 29, 2019 |access-date=February 19, 2020 |archive-date=March 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200301095220/https://www.politico.com/story/2019/01/29/bush-axis-of-evil-2002-1127725 |url-status=live }}</ref>