on Iran’s computer network and the killing of Iranian scientists provoked Tehran into non-negotiation with the IAEA. The standoff, which the neoconservatives wanted, emerged.
Was Iran ever on the road toward a nuclear weapon? In 2005, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei delivered a decree against nuclear weapons. This fatwa followed an important one from Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in December 1987 against chemical weapons. This is a significant ruling, because it came after Iraq used chemical weapons (components of which were supplied by the west) against Iranian troops on several occasions.
It is certainly true that Iran hid parts of its programme in the late 2000s from the IAEA, but this is not unusual. Old ideas of Westphalian sovereignty drive modern states to be jealous of their territorial control (it is likely this that provoked Saddam Hussein to play cat and mouse with the UN inspectors, not the presence of any dangerous weapons – since there were none in 2002-03).
When the US first attacked the Taliban in 2001, Iran provided crucial support in western Afghanistan. That collusion was valuable for the troops, but it stopped when George W Bush – surprisingly – put Iran on his ‘Axis of Evil’ list.
Iran is the most important ally for Iraq and has substantial influence in Kabul. It has close links to the Syrian government. Pipelines and train lines run through Iran toward China, financed by India, China and Turkey. China, Russia and other Asian states have substantial commercial interests in Iran, as do the Europeans.
Iran is a major player in the anti-Isis war. In Iraq and parts of Syria, it provides the logistical and strategic support for the war-weary Iraqi and Syrian troops. To lead, as the US believes, a war against Isis without Iran on board is farcical. Iran’s isolation as a result of the western and UN sanctions is fated to end whether the US ratifies the deal or not.
Neither Sens Charles Charles Schumer nor Bob Menendez have provided a credible answer to the question – if the deal does not go through, is the United States willing to go to war against a country of 80 million people?
If you think West Asia is in the midst of dangerous chaos now, a western and Israeli attack on Iran would let fly from Pandora’s box what evils remain yet in slumber.
This article has been excerpted from: ‘Why the Iran deal is essential’.
Courtesy: Counterpunch.org