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Iran Is Trying to Blackmail the World for Billions

(Fox News) Olli Heinonen and Tzvi Kahn - Iran is once again trying to blackmail the world for billions of dollars, after announcing that it is beginning work to develop centrifuges to accelerate uranium enrichment. The world must not give in to Iran. While the Islamic Republic claims it is only interested in developing nuclear power for peaceful purposes, its behavior points to its desire to keep its options open to develop atomic bombs. Those bombs would pose a threat to Israel, other U.S. allies in the Middle East, and eventually Europe and the U.S. itself. The U.S. and Europe would be making a mistake of historic proportions if they surrender to the latest Iranian demand for a $15 billion line of credit aimed at offsetting the impact of crippling U.S. economic sanctions. Instead, they should stand firm and make clear that Iran will receive sanctions relief only if and when it negotiates a comprehensive new nuclear deal that meets the 12 conditions stipulated by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in a May 2018 address. Premature concessions would merely incentivize Iran to engage in further nuclear blackmail. Iran's covert atomic archive, which Israel seized from a Tehran warehouse last year, discloses a range of sites, equipment and activity previously unknown to the International Atomic Energy Agency, thereby raising the possibility that illicit conduct continues today without the agency's knowledge. Should the world capitulate now to Tehran's threats, it would make productive negotiations less likely. After all, Iran would have no incentive to compromise on its nuclear program if it faces no meaningful economic penalties for its misbehavior. Ultimately, Iran will only negotiate a stronger nuclear deal if the costs of its nuclear misconduct far exceed the benefits. The U.S. and Europe should, therefore, double down on economic sanctions against Iran. In the absence of such measures, Iran will likely continue its efforts to blackmail the international community, pocketing concessions without altering the malign behavior that spurred the crisis in the first place. These sanctions should remain in place until Iran concludes a new agreement ensuring, in a verifiable manner, that it has abandoned its pursuit of nuclear weapons. Olli Heinonen is a former deputy director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency and head of its Department of Safeguards. Tzvi Kahn is a senior Iran analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
2019-09-09 00:00:00
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