In the P5+1 talks at Geneva, Iran agreed to have low enriched uranium from its Natanz site further enriched abroad and fabricated into fuel for its Tehran Research Reactor. Yet technical problems could derail this initiative.
Better protection of U.S. forces and allies against the Iranian missile threat is reason enough to welcome the shift in U.S. missile defense policy. Improving the prospects for future progress in reducing the threat from Russia is icing on the cake.
Unity among the five permanent members of the Security Council plus Germany will be key during this week's nuclear talks with Iran in Geneva. But can the P5+1 convince Iran that this time the international community means business?
Proposed economic sanctions on Iran should focus on undermining the Islamic regime rather than stopping its nuclear program.
The disclosure of the clandestine enrichment facility at Qom puts the spotlight back on Iran to answer for their illegal nuclear activities. While sanctions will not succeed in forcing Iran to halt enrichment, they could help make Iran negotiate the conditions under which they would continue enriching.
The Iranian nuclear program continues to be a major foreign policy challenge for the Obama administration. Changing the behavior of the regime will most likely require a change in its character.
Iran's covert centrifuge facility at Qom was clearly better suited to military ends than the IAEA-monitored facility at Natanz. Serious questions remain about whether Iran could be hiding other parts of its nuclear infrastructure.
Iran's test-firing of a new, more advanced missile type with the capability to reach Israel, Europe or the Persian Gulf has increased tension over the Iranian nuclear program. The missile test will have a profound affect on the upcoming multilateral nuclear talks.
Iran has test-fired advanced missiles, just days before international negotiations over its nuclear program take place on October 1. The key issue at hand, however, is the recent disclosure of its clandestine centrifuge facility near Qom.
Iran's continued resistance to cooperate with the international community on its nuclear program demonstrates the regime's intransigence, particularly in light of the Obama administration efforts to engage.
















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