Iran allowed inspectors from the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to inspect the nuclear reactor at Arak for the first time in a year and has also granted them greater monitoring of uranium-enrichment facility at Natanz. The accord breaks a months long impasse between Iran and the IAEA. As reported in the Wall Street Journal, while some diplomats hope that Iran’s decision signals a greater willingness by President Ahmadinejad’s government to cooperate, other diplomats are cynical about Iran’s intentions believing that Tehran’s conciliatory line toward the IAEA might be an early step to split the Security Council on the sanctions issue.
The United States, Britain, France and Germany, are expected to urge Russia and China in talks on September 2 to consider a fourth round of U.N. sanctions on Iran. President Obama has repeatedly stated his intention of pushing for more sanctions on Iran if it does not agree to come to the negotiating table by late September. A big factor in the decision to push for more sanctions will be the IAEA’s latest report on Iran’s nuclear program to be released early next week.
The report is already causing controversy. According to Israeli newspaper Haaretz, Israeli officials have accused the IAEA of hiding data on Iran’s drive to obtain nuclear arms. The newspaper alleged that the new evidence submitted to the IAEA in a classified annex written by its inspectors in Iran, indicating Iran’s intention to pursue military applications for its nuclear program, was not incorporated into the agency’s published reports.
For more information on Iranian Nuclear Program, here is the IAEA website on Iran.
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
