Iran’s nuclear dilemma and Pakistan

[PureAryan]

Iran’s nuclear dilemma and Pakistan​

By Bassam Javed
The two-day talks between Iran and 5+1 countries on former’s nuclear program concluded on 7th of this month in Athens. The talks, held after 14 months on the issue, did result in breaking some ice on Iranian long held instance as Washington Institute for Near East Policy expert Patrick Clawson described the results with some silver linings, “The U.S. wanted some indications that Iran was going to seriously engage about its nuclear program.

Every indication is that we have that.” Clawson cited the devastating sanctions that convinced Iranians to return to negotiations process. U.S. officials claimed that sanctions resulted in reduction of 85 percent drop in Iranian imports of refined petroleum products.

It lost nearly US $60bn in foreign investment in its energy sector since then and the Iranian banks were hard pressed for money from foreign institutions. The sanctions also drastically curtailed the trade with outside world.

The conference’s communiqué though did not help remove the existing mistrust as the two sides agreed to a meet again in January 2010 in Istanbul.

Iranian revelations prior it went into talks with 5+1 countries that it had mined and produced its indigenous Uranium yellowcake to ease dependence on foreign imports, did not impact the talks though the U.S. and Europe voiced their concerns.

The United States and the Europe are in a dilemma on how to deal with Iran’s nuclear program that they say is weapons oriented. Iran has always denied the Western assumptions. It has openly declared that its program is for peaceful use of nuclear energy.

The Western think tanks have regularly failed to recommend workable common grounds on the nuclear issue that keeps Iran and the United States at odds with each other. The think tanks try to evolve solutions clinging to their age old belief that either the Iranian society is too politically divided or it is too dependent on the hostility towards the United States to truly justify its nuclear program. On its part also, the Obama administration has done little to court Iran that can be reflective of American credence towards Iran for winning its confidence. The continued duplicity and inaptitude of the U.S. Administration has further weared off the Iranians in believing on U.S. intents.

If the latest Wikileaks are to be believed, they have gone to augment American designs on Iran. It just simply does not want Iran, another Islamic country, to become nuclear to secure Israeli interests and to keep the latter’s influence over the middle-eastern countries.

The subjugation of Iran, the only force to reckon with in the middle- eastern region is what the Israelis and the Americans have always wanted. America also wants Iran not to become so powerful that it starts challenging its allies in the Arab world.

But if it were not for the control of Iran in world’s oil supply markets and stock exchanges and the strategic location at the mouth of the entrance to gulf waters, America would have taken on Iran militarily by now. Since that will be a very delicate decision that can have devastating global implications therefore, America wants to cripple Iran through economic and other sanctions.

There has always been some fundamental element of dishonesty in American approach towards Iranian nuclear quest part of which is to appease Israelis and part of which is to safe guard corridors of oil supply sources and routes in the Persian Gulf.

When Iran requested IAEA find a supplier for fuelling its Tehran research Reactor in June 2009, Al-Baradei, head of the agency at that time, promptly showed the request to the United States and Russia.

Instead of taking the Iranian letter as a confidence mending step, Americans decided to put the Iranians in a bind. The US deliberately linked the provision of fuel for Tehran’s Research Reactor with swapping most of the Iranian stockpiles of low-enriched uranium and dictated Iran to take the offer or leave it.

If Iran decided otherwise then US would gather consensus for imposition of crippling sanctions on Iran. United States could have cashed the opportunity and helped Iran getting fuel for Tehran Reactor however the credibility of the U.S. on the highest international importance with respect to Iran hurt the Iranians. Moreover, it worked to fail Turkish and Brazil’s offer for transfer of the Iranian stockpile to get them on board for implementation of sanctions.

The whole international community is now weary of U.S. intentions on Iran which in potentially effect the regional security and economic environment.

Iran occupies a key place in the foreign policy of Pakistan not only because of its strategic location and neighborhood but also for the common bonds of faith, history, culture that exist between the two countries. Both the countries’ interests and concerns are interlinked with each other. Pakistan has publicly defended Iran’s right for peaceful nuclear technology. Pakistan has increasingly voiced its support for peaceful reconciliation on the international nuclear standoff with Iran and supported resolution of the dispute through sincere negotiations.

Despite the latest episode of Wikileaks’s sensational revelations regarding uneasiness of some Mid-eastern countries over Iran’s nuclear program, Pakistan will always remain supportive of Iran through thick and thin. Iran was one of the very few countries that recognized Pakistan soon after its independence.

The perceptions of both the countries on important regional and international issues are common. Their cooperation on various international forums i.e. UN, OIC, ECO and D-8 has been exemplary.

The differences of opinion over Afghanistan have also not alienated either country since both have common interests to share therein like creation of peace amongst the warring factions, preservation of Afghan independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan and return of the refugees to their home land.

Pakistan and Iran have a lot to benefit from each other’s resources which are periodically reviewed for implementation and both have vowed to stand together to confront issues that tend to plague their otherwise brotherly relationship.

Iran?s nuclear dilemma and Pakistan