[Mb-civic] NYTimes.com Article: Indispensable Allies on Iran

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Indispensable Allies on Iran

August 14, 2004
 


 

Iraq provides a textbook lesson for a superpower about the
dangers of going it alone in the world, but the Bush
administration seems to suffer from attention deficit
disorder. Some of its more hawkish officials are now
pressing to confront Iran over its nuclear weapons
development, regardless of whether America's main allies
are convinced that diplomacy and inspections have been
exhausted. Nobody in Washington proposes invading Iran, but
administration officials hint darkly about starting an
effort to destabilize Tehran's clerical dictatorship.
Iran's ruling mullahs are justifiably unpopular. But
unilateral American bullying is one sure way to rally
flagging support for them among nationalistic Iranians. 

Stopping Iran from building nuclear weapons could
eventually require strong, concerted international action.
This is no time for Washington to strike out ahead of the
allies whose active cooperation may well be needed in the
months ahead. 

Unlike Iraq's long-dormant nuclear weapons program, Iran's
program seems to be moving steadily forward, and it has
drawn sharp criticism from the International Atomic Energy
Agency. Tehran has defiantly proclaimed its intention to
produce enriched uranium, which can be used in bombs as
well as electrical-power reactors. Late last month it
resumed building the centrifuges needed for such
enrichment, ending a construction freeze it had agreed to
earlier this year with Britain, France and Germany. Though
Iran seems to be staying just within the limits of what is
allowed under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, it is
positioning itself so it could withdraw from the treaty and
make bombs once it has completed building the new equipment
and has amassed enough natural uranium to begin enrichment.


The three European allies, while harboring few illusions
about Iran's intentions, believe that tough-minded
negotiations still have a chance of producing positive
results. Until they conclude otherwise, they are unlikely
to support any American request to impose coercive
sanctions. European officials are awaiting the results of
an I.A.E.A. analysis of traces of enriched uranium found on
centrifuge parts in Iran. That analysis should resolve,
among other things, whether the parts were contaminated
elsewhere, before Iran got them, or whether Iran has
already begun a covert uranium-enrichment program in
violation of its treaty commitments. The agency will
announce its findings next month. 

Continuing uncertainty over issues like this argue for
giving Europe's diplomacy some more time, but not much.
Neither Europe nor America can afford to wake up one day to
discover that Iran is quitting the nonproliferation treaty
and building weapons. If diplomacy fails, tough Security
Council action will be required to head off such a move by
Iran, and Washington will need the full support of its key
allies then. It should be fully supporting their diplomatic
efforts now. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/14/opinion/14sat1.html?ex=1093510086&ei=1&en=82512422277b7738


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