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Hold Iran Accountable

[Washington Times] Kenneth R. Timmerman - Iran's leaders are testing us in Iraq, where Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) networks continue to fund both Sunni and Shi'ite insurgents. They are testing us at the International Atomic Energy Agency and at the UN, where they continue to defy demands by the international community to verifiably suspend their nuclear programs, which constitute a clear violation of Iran's commitments as a signatory of the Nonproliferation Treaty. Voices are raised saying that we should negotiate with Tehran's leaders if we want to avoid war. But we simply don't need negotiations with the regime over its nuclear program. Through UN Security Council resolutions, we have set out the parameters of what the Iranian regime must do to avert steadily increasing international sanctions. They can accept those conditions, shut down their programs in a verifiable manner, or suffer the consequences. The U.S. should not settle for anything less than full, unconditional compliance from Tehran. There is nothing to negotiate. The same goes for Iran's involvement in Iraq, its support for international terrorist groups, its refusal to recognize the right of Israel to exist, and its wretched disregard for its own citizens' political and human rights. Why should we negotiate down the standards of internationally acceptable behavior? We should hold Iran's leadership accountable for its behavior by rolling up its networks in Iraq and striking the IRGC support structures across the border. We should insist Iran comply with the International Covenant of Political and Human Rights that it has signed. We should enforce the huge number of judgments against top regime leaders in courts around the world for their terrorist attacks. For starters, we should insist that Iran comply with the UN Security Council demands on its nuclear programs by ratcheting up mandatory economic and diplomatic sanctions. Anything less is just not serious. The writer is president of the Middle East Data Project Inc. and executive director of the Foundation for Democracy in Iran.
2007-03-01 01:00:00
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