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Squeezing Iran

[Wall Street Journal] Editorial - Thursday's announcement by the Bush Administration that it is sanctioning Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is a step forward. The U.S. is also citing the branch of the Revolutionary Guard known as the Quds Force for supporting such terrorist groups as the Taliban, Hizbullah and Hamas. These sanctions should have some bite, because we've learned from North Korea that even unilateral U.S. financial sanctions can get the attention of rogue regimes. These nonmilitary U.S. sanctions come after more than four years of deferring to European and UN diplomacy toward Iran. U.S. commanders in Iraq have provided acres of evidence that the Quds Force is responsible for aiding Shiite radicals with deadly roadside bombs. Senior administration officials tell us that 70% of U.S. casualties in Iraq are the result of Shiite forces supplied by Iran. The Quds Force has been caught red-handed supplying the Taliban with weapons that kill U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan. The main problem with these sanctions is they probably won't go far enough to change Iranian behavior. If the rest of the world really wants a nonmilitary solution to Iranian aggression, they should see these U.S. sanctions as one last chance to show Tehran otherwise. The alternative is likely to be the resort to military force.
2007-10-26 01:00:00
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