Everything points to American and Israeli preparation for a possible attack on Iran before that nation obtains the capability to produce nuclear bomb. David Ignatius, of The Washington Post, stated on the Chris Matthews Show that the United States is on a fast track to the development a super bomb that could penetrate underground facilities. Israel has unveiled a new drone fleet that can reach Iran.
Just a few days ago the New York Times published an editorial titled “Time’s up for talking with Iran.” An edited version of that editorial was printed in the Toronto Star. Clearly the U.S. government is making every effort to send a message to Iran. That edited editorial appears below.
Over the last four years, the United Nations Security Council has repeatedly demanded that Iran stop producing nuclear fuel. Iran is still churning out enriched uranium and has now told United Nations inspectors that it is raising the level of enrichment – moving slightly closer to bomb-grade quality.
Enough is enough. Iran needs to understand that its nuclear ambition comes with a very high cost.
President Barack Obama said on Tuesday that the United States and its allies are “moving along fairly quickly” on a new sanctions resolution. He also said it would take several weeks to draft a proposal. That is not reassuring. Once a resolution is written, the negotiating process typically drags on for weeks, if not months.
Iran is in such economic and political turmoil that its government may be more vulnerable to outside pressure. Security forces have expanded a crackdown on the political opposition, arresting hundreds of people ahead of Thursday’s anniversary of the Iranian revolution.
American officials say they are eager to impose sanctions that would inflict maximum damage on the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which runs the nuclear program and a large chunk of the Iranian economy.
The plan, as we understand it, is to block their banking, their shipping, their insurance. American officials also say they want to minimize the additional suffering of the Iranian people. That makes sense to us, although squaring the circle won’t be easy.
If the Security Council is to move ahead with sanctions that bite, Washington and its allies are going to have to step up the pressure on Russia and China – Iran’s two enablers, both with a veto – to go along.
Russia has signaled support for another resolution. If history is any guide, we fear Russia will sharply whittle down the impact. China, eager to buy ever more oil from Iran, is an even bigger obstacle. China needs to understand that ensuring reliable oil supplies would become a lot harder if the Middle East is roiled by a nuclear-armed Iran.
The more the Security Council temporizes, compromises and weakens these resolutions, the more defiant and ambitious Iran becomes. If the Security Council can’t act swiftly, or decisively, the United States and its allies will have to come up with their own tough sanctions. They should be making a backup plan right now.
This is an edited version of an editorial that appeared this week in the New York Times and was printed in the Toronto Star
Isn’t this all about sending a message to Iran?
Coast Contact 