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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsObama: Iran Has Not Advanced Nuclear Ambitions Since U.S. Negotiations Started
When you close out the year by ditching Americas 50-year isolation of Cuba, you can expect a few broader questions about your style on the international stage.
President Barack Obama said in a year-end interview with CNNs Candy Crowley that he has been "consistent in saying that where we can solve problems diplomatically, we should do so."
Crowley pressed Obama to respond to the charge that he is too willing to cut deals that produce little in return for the United States.
"The gist of it is that you're naive and they're rolling you," Crowley said, speaking of other world leaders.
Obama shot back that on a couple of major fronts, his track record is looking pretty good. Russia now has a crisis on its hands as its economy stalls and the value of the ruble tumbles. On Iran, the president said there have been real gains.
"Over the last year and a half, since we began negotiations with them, that's probably the first year and a half in which Iran has not advanced its nuclear program in the last decade," Obama said.
The fear that Iran is developing nuclear weapons, a charge that Iran denies, has bedeviled the international community for over 15 years. We decided to take a closer look at whether Irans program has advanced or not.
We found general agreement that in terms of curtailing the means to produce enriched uranium and plutonium, the essential fuels needed for an atomic bomb, negotiations between the United States, Iran and other United Nations countries contributed to real progress. However, some analysts define Irans nuclear program more broadly to include suspected efforts to design nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. The negotiations dont address those elements, however, and what Iran is doing or has done in that area is subject to much debate.
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http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2014/dec/21/barack-obama/obama-iran-has-not-advanced-nuclear-ambitions-us-n/
PDJane
(10,103 posts)The have wanted a peaceful power project, but a nuclear weapon is anathema to Islam. This has been stated several times by the Supreme Council.
Israel is not convinced, but then....Israel is not a signatory to the NNPT. Iran is.
KinMd
(966 posts)I am glad and hopeful a peaceful agreement will be reached
Purveyor
(29,876 posts)has done in their 'hood' over the past decade.
PDJane
(10,103 posts)ready or willing to develop a nuclear weapon.
The west gave them the right to have a peaceful nuclear program. And, while Pakistan is a predominately muslim country, they are not a religious state. Iran is.
Purveyor
(29,876 posts)has already decimated countries and killed hundred of thousands innocent peoples.
The best outcome would be that the Russian enters into a 'security pact' with Iran similar to the NATO pact.
quadrature
(2,049 posts)makes things easier for Iran when
they breakout happens
True Blue Door
(2,969 posts)It's certainly more trustworthy than the likes of Pakistan.
PDJane
(10,103 posts)Moreover, Iran is not invading it's neighbours. It doesn't support IS.
And it is a signatory to the NNPT, which is important.