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The Iran Agreement - a U.S. Defeat

(New York Times) David Brooks - Over the past several years the U.S. has engaged in an economic, clandestine and political war against Iran to force it to give up its nuclear program. Wars, military or economic, are measured by whether you achieved your stated objectives. By this standard the U.S. lost the war against Iran. As a report from the Foreign Policy Initiative exhaustively details, the Iran agreement delays but does not end Iran's nuclear program. It legitimizes Iran's status as a nuclear state. Iran will mothball some of its centrifuges, but it will not dismantle or close any of its nuclear facilities. Nuclear research and development will continue. Iran wins the right to enrich uranium. The agreement does not include "anywhere, anytime" inspections; some inspections would require a 24-day waiting period, giving the Iranians plenty of time to clean things up. After eight years, all restrictions on ballistic missiles are lifted. Why did we lose? Why did the combined powers of the Western world lose to a ragtag regime with a crippled economy and without much popular support? The first answer is that the Iranians just wanted victory more than we did. Iran is a fanatical, hegemonic, hate-filled regime. If you think its radicalism is going to be softened by a few global trade opportunities, you really haven't been paying attention to the Middle East over the past four decades. Iran will use its $150 billion windfall to spread terror around the region and exert its power. It will incrementally but dangerously cheat on the accord. Armed with money, ballistic weapons and an eventual nuclear breakout, it will become more aggressive. Sometimes when you surrender to a tyranny, you lay the groundwork for a more cataclysmic conflict to come.
2015-08-07 00:00:00
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