[bitterlemons-international] Emily B. Landau - The first implication of Iran becoming a nuclear state will be to drive home the extreme helplessness of the international community in the face of a determined nuclear proliferator. As the U.S. has signaled its distaste for military force and has given Israel a clear red light in this regard, the likely scenario at present is that Iran's going nuclear will come in the wake of a long, drawn-out and failed U.S. attempt to engage Iran. After assuming the role of the major external player facing Iran, then abandoning both economic and military pressure, it will be primarily a U.S. failure when Iran ultimately goes nuclear. The U.S. will be exposed globally as weak and ineffective. The writer is senior research associate and director of the Arms Control and Regional Security Project at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University.
2009-06-09 06:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive