Middle East Politics.Net » nuclear weapons

Dubai’s Unique Role in the ME

davidhulme — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 21:38:32 +0000

Juan Cole’s blog has a guest writer today, Jim Crane, author of City of Gold: Dubai and the Dream of Capitalism. A paragraph from the guest blog notes, “In short, Dubai is an open city, a Hong Kong-style trading entrepôt with all the spies, smugglers and schemers inherent in that role. It just happens to service the world’s most dangerous region.”

David Hulme

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Iran Would Welcome Obama Talks

bjrussel — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 04:55:40 +0000

Iran’s Vice President Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie told Tokyo Koyodu News Agency that President Ahmadinejad would welcome talks with President-elect Barack Obama, as long as the talks are held openly and their contents made fully available to the press. Ahmadinejad has stated that he believes face-to-face diplomacy to be the most successful means to achieving a positive end, but that in order for that end to be reached the President-elect needs to change his tune. Obama has recently added his voice to the many calling for an immediate halt to Iran’s nuclear program that many believe to be aimed at creating nuclear weapons, but that Iran claims is solely for electricity generating purposes. However, the Iranian President states that the only means to achieve peace is for the President-elect to stand by his campaign promise of “change” and direct the new administration away from the approach of its predecessors.

Bridget Russell

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UK Expresses More Concerns Over Iran’s Nuclear Program

kcahoon — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 04:02:08 +0000

The British government t oday accused Iran of failing to cooperate with a United Nations watchdog. This failure has contributed to the UK becoming increasingly concerned with Iran’s nuclear program and whether or not they are creating nuclear weapons. A report by the UN nuclear watchdog states that Iran plans to start installing an extra 3,000 centrifuges that enrich uranium early next year in addition to the 3,800 already in operation and another 2,000 that are gradually being introduced. Thus far the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been unable to determine whether the enrichment of this uranium is for the purposes of creating nuclear weapons, and this possibility has led to much concern for Western nations such as the UK and the United States, along with the Western ally of Israel. Ahmadinejad’s previous comment that he would like to “wipe Israel off the map” make the possibility of Iran possessing weapons of mass destruction extremely worrisome. Iran has so far refused to answer questions from the IAEA, but continues to insist its uranium enrichment is merely for purposes of creating more electricity. British Foreign Secretary David Millband stated today that while Iran has been offered economic, cultural and scientific incentives to cease its uranium enrichment program, severe sanctions will also need to be enforced if Iran continues to disregard the requirements of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Britain, the United States, China, Russia, France and Germany have previously offered to halt seeking more sanctions if Iran agrees to stop this program. It appears that the long disagreement between much of the world and Iran regarding nuclear power is nowhere near a resolution, but the British are certainly refusing to give up.

Kayla Cahoon

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Iran Holds Military Exercises

stevencc — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 05:51:36 +0000

Iran staged joint military operations between the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) and the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) on Monday in preparation for a possible Israeli attack. Israel and the United States have both threatened attacks on the nation’s nuclear facilities if Iran’s nuclear energy program is not halted. Iran tested its new Shahab-3 missiles that would be capable of hitting targets within 1,245 miles, which would allow the Islamic nation to target bases in Israel if the country was attacked.

The United States and Israel have repeatedly accused Iran of violating the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) by seeking nuclear weaponry. Interesting to note, however, is that the UN can only confirm Iran’s enrichment of uranium-235 to a level of 3.7 percent. In contrast, nuclear armaments require an enrichment of approximately 90%.

Steven Craig

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U.S. to Place Sanctions on Iranian Shipping Company

stevencc — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 05:26:33 +0000

Drawing on its policy to deter future uranium enrichment in Iran, the U.S. government has placed further sanctions on the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) under the pretext that it has previously been involved in illicit commerce. The Washington Post touched on the main strategies of the world’s major powers in dealing with Iran, which consist of UN and bilateral sanctions to pressure Iran economically into halting further uranium enrichment. Iran has long been accused by the U.S. of developing its nuclear power program to create nuclear weapons, an accusation that Iran has continually denied. Iran does not seem deterred by these accusations, as its government has consistantly insisted that its nuclear ambitions are purely for the peaceful pursuit of new forms of energy.

Steven Craig

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Iran less entitled to nuclear programs than the U.S.?

kcahoon — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 05:38:46 +0000

Much talk about Iran in the West revolves around their potential development of nuclear weapons. The article “Iran Offers to Launch Satellites for Muslim Countries,” published by the New York Times, also raises this issue. While the United States seems to distrust Iran’s claim that their nuclear program is for “purely peaceful purposes,” some may view this as hypocritical.

The United States dropped atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II and today has a well developed nuclear program. What exactly makes the United States more qualified than Iran to possess such technology? Why do American government representatives feel justified in criticizing Iranian announcements about launching satellites for Muslim countries?

If Iran considers Muslim countries their allies, is this really any different? In fact, is the United States not the only country who has a history of using nuclear weapons in war?

Kayla Cahoon

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