August 27, 2006 – (Manila) – More that three years ago, the world, well a portion of the world played a blinking game with Iraq on the issue of alleged weapons of mass destruction that Saddam Hussein supposedly stashed all over Iraq.
At that time, the United States, the United Kingdom and the rest of its allies did not blink, and then decided to invade Iraq. Iraq only blinked after its leadership collapsed under the weight of the advancing forces led by the United States.
Years after invading Iraq, signs or evidence of valid and volatile weapons of mass destruction have not been found.
In the next coming days, the world is once again playing the blinking game and this time around with Iran and on its insistence to pursue its nuclear-based energy program.
Most of the Western world as led by the United States have utilized the United Nations as the diplomatic channel to force Iran to cease and desist from pursuing its nuclear-based energy program.
The United States has maintained that Iran might utilize its nuclear research facilities to develop weapons but Iran maintains that their research is geared only towards developing its own nuclear-based power facilities.
The U.N. Security Council gave Iran only until this August 31 to stop its uranium enrichment program or face political and economic sanctions.
This Saturday, Tehran showed the world that it had no intentions of being cowed by the West and started operation for its first heavy water processing facility located in Khondab, near Arak, 120 miles (190 km) southwest of the capital Tehran.
A defiant Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad insisted that the west can not force and deprive Iran of its rights to pursue its nuclear research.
Ahmadinejad maintains that their program is geared only towards developing clean and efficient electricity for a country which is the fourth largest oil exporter in the world.
The controversial Iranian President insists that, “the no one can deprive a nation of its rights based on its capabilities," during the opening of the heavy water facility.
He reiterated that Iran was not a threat to the world and that included Israel whom Mr. Ahmadinejad once referred to as state that needed to be wiped off the map.
Despite pronouncements by the Iranian President of the country’s peaceful intentions on its nuclear program, the world particularly the United States does not want to flatly believe Mr. Ahmadinejad.
The Iranian President’s pronouncements from the days he campaigned to be elected president were something that did not appease the world, statements that promoted the so called. “new wave of Islamic revolution.”
From the onset of this year, Iran has been at the center of diplomacy, barely over shadowed by other global incidents like North Korea’s test firing missiles near Japan and the recent crisis in Southern Lebanon between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.
The United Nation’s Security Council has been placed in a difficult position once again on the issue of Iran, with one side that included Russia and China adhering to a more relaxed approach on Iran’s nuclear program while the United States and the United Kingdom have insisted a more direct approach in a level of a sanction, similar to the one given to Iraq more than a decade ago.
Once again in the next four days, the issue with Iran’s insistence to pursue its nuclear program will escalate into the level of “global blink” and the critical stage here is will Iran back down or not and if so, will the UN act as one or like before, as in the case of Iraq, it would have to concede again to the preferred diplomatic solution of the United States.
As to who will blink, it is a matter that will still unfold.
At that time, the United States, the United Kingdom and the rest of its allies did not blink, and then decided to invade Iraq. Iraq only blinked after its leadership collapsed under the weight of the advancing forces led by the United States.
Years after invading Iraq, signs or evidence of valid and volatile weapons of mass destruction have not been found.
In the next coming days, the world is once again playing the blinking game and this time around with Iran and on its insistence to pursue its nuclear-based energy program.
Most of the Western world as led by the United States have utilized the United Nations as the diplomatic channel to force Iran to cease and desist from pursuing its nuclear-based energy program.
The United States has maintained that Iran might utilize its nuclear research facilities to develop weapons but Iran maintains that their research is geared only towards developing its own nuclear-based power facilities.
The U.N. Security Council gave Iran only until this August 31 to stop its uranium enrichment program or face political and economic sanctions.
This Saturday, Tehran showed the world that it had no intentions of being cowed by the West and started operation for its first heavy water processing facility located in Khondab, near Arak, 120 miles (190 km) southwest of the capital Tehran.
A defiant Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad insisted that the west can not force and deprive Iran of its rights to pursue its nuclear research.
Ahmadinejad maintains that their program is geared only towards developing clean and efficient electricity for a country which is the fourth largest oil exporter in the world.
The controversial Iranian President insists that, “the no one can deprive a nation of its rights based on its capabilities," during the opening of the heavy water facility.
He reiterated that Iran was not a threat to the world and that included Israel whom Mr. Ahmadinejad once referred to as state that needed to be wiped off the map.
Despite pronouncements by the Iranian President of the country’s peaceful intentions on its nuclear program, the world particularly the United States does not want to flatly believe Mr. Ahmadinejad.
The Iranian President’s pronouncements from the days he campaigned to be elected president were something that did not appease the world, statements that promoted the so called. “new wave of Islamic revolution.”
From the onset of this year, Iran has been at the center of diplomacy, barely over shadowed by other global incidents like North Korea’s test firing missiles near Japan and the recent crisis in Southern Lebanon between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.
The United Nation’s Security Council has been placed in a difficult position once again on the issue of Iran, with one side that included Russia and China adhering to a more relaxed approach on Iran’s nuclear program while the United States and the United Kingdom have insisted a more direct approach in a level of a sanction, similar to the one given to Iraq more than a decade ago.
Once again in the next four days, the issue with Iran’s insistence to pursue its nuclear program will escalate into the level of “global blink” and the critical stage here is will Iran back down or not and if so, will the UN act as one or like before, as in the case of Iraq, it would have to concede again to the preferred diplomatic solution of the United States.
As to who will blink, it is a matter that will still unfold.
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