Egypt urges UN: Monitor Israel nuclear program

[Poll_Blind]

Egypt urges UN: Monitor Israel nuclear program, emphasis mine:

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit has appealed to the United Nations Security Council to put Israel's nuclear program under international supervision and set a timeframe for a nuclear-free Middle East.

In a letter to the 15-member council last week, Aboul Gheit highlighted that Israel has not signed onto the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) adding: "Israel's nuclear capabilities cannot evade world attention."

An Egyptian Foreign Ministry spokesman said that Aboul Gheit had sent the letter to all 15 members, rather than the five permanent powers, in order to give other states a chance to voice their stance on the issue. For the first time in 18 years, Israel, the United States and the Western powers last week were unsuccessful at preventing passage of a resolution calling on Israel to sign the NPT.

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In the past, the United States and other Western countries were able to persuade the developing countries not to join the resolution, thus thwarting its passage.

Right now India and Israel are operating outside the NPT and the United States is protecting both of them. So why should the world particularly freak out, say, if Russia is providing nuclear technology to Iran? It's all a matter of perspective. By following the rules ourselves we encourage others to do so and gain the position as an honest broker when trying to curb the acquisition of nuclear technologies by other countries.

However, we don't do that. We cry foul when countries like Iran (and very soon this will come up with Arab countries like Egypt and Saudi Arabia, who have declared the intent to work on nuclear programs) acquire nuclear technology but turn a blind eye to both Israel and India. Given the political situation in regards to Israel vs a good chuunk of the Middle East and India vs Pakistan, our cries to stop North Korea, for instance, from developing nuclear technology ring very hollow.

We aren't taken seriously on NPT because we don't take NPT seriously, ourselves.

PB