While the U.S. and other world powers work to constrain Iran's nuclear program, five rival nations plan atomic programs
One of the most important reasons why the U.S. is trying to conclude a nuclear deal with Iran is to prevent an Iranian bomb from triggering a nuclear race in the Middle East. Yet even as talks continue now in Switzerland, Tehran’s regional rivals have already begun quietly acting on their own atomic ambitions. Nuclear power may be on the wane almost everywhere else in the world, but it’s all the rage in the place with all that oil.
Egypt’s announcement last month that it was hiring Russia to build a reactor near Alexandria made it only the latest entrant in an emerging atomic derby. Every other major Sunni power in the region has announced similar plans. And though none appear either as ambitious nor as ambiguous as what’s taken place in Iran—which set out to master the entire atomic fuel cycle, a red flag for a military program—each announcement lays down a marker in a region that, until recently, was notable as the one place on the planet where governments had made little progress on nuclear power.
WNU Editor: As long as I can remember nuclear proliferation in the Middle East has always been the nightmare scenario that everyone feared .... and now it is becoming a reality.
Update: Mushroom clouds in the Middle East draw closer -- Irish Times
2 comments:
I patiently told some friends in early January 2008 that we needn't worry about a nuclear armed Iran. While I knew then as now, American pilots lack the piloting skills or the intel to get past the Russian made Iranian air defense systems necessary to find, locate, and destroy the needed targets to make a dent in much less eliminate Iran's nuclear weapons program. The Israelis do possess the necessary skills as well the skilled Intellegence services to get this done or at least they did back in early 2008 when the program was less far along.
I assumed they perhaps working with the Sunni Arab states would launch the operation. Furthermore America would need to be kept completely out of the loop on it as America then as now is filled to the brim with moles and moral squishes who would act to undermine the operation by tipping off the Iranians. In other words, as I explained, neither we nor American officials would even be aware of the operation until AFTER it happened and the Israelis were successful. Frankly, I was rather looking forward to observing the "deer in the headlights" look on the faces of US officials while be completely bewildered by what had transpired and trying to explain it!!
Had I have known at the time that the Israelis and the Sunni Arab states were unable or unwilling to do this I would have suggested that all American departments get ready for a nuclear armed Iran and prepare accordingly. Unfortunately we've lost 7+ years that could have been spent planning for this now!!
I think what we may be witnessing here is the various stakeholders in the Middle East are waking up the reality that Iran is going to be nuclear armed and there's not a thing that can be done to stop it. The Russians played a pivotal role in the Iranian bomb. Now I see they are going to help Sunni Egypt do the same thing. It seems to me the Russians are the cleverest country in the world right now!!
At this point, it seems to me that negotiations do little good as "deal", "bad deal", or "no deal" the Iranians are going to get the bomb. As such "no deal" seems to be the best approach. In any event, Mr. Netanyahu is correct when he points out that no deal is better than a bad deal. He is wise. If only top officials within the Administration and Mr. Obama had the wisdom to seek counsel from such a wise man.
I think you are right about the inevitability of the Iraninan nuke problem. Their new anti ship cruise missiles are proof of that. They are not on the path to diplomacy, they are on the path to maintain their military influence in the region.
Post a Comment