A six-nation foreign ministers' meeting on the Iranian nuclear issue, summoned by the United States, convened on January 22 in Berlin, Germany. The six world powers, consisting of five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany, will hold talks over finalizing the text of a third UN sanctions resolution against Iran which could be voted on in the meeting; and striving to reach a consensus on strategies to further enhance sanctions against Iran.
The on-going meeting is a reaction to Iran's refusal to halt sensitive nuclear work despite the previous two rounds of UN sanctions.
Iran insists that its uranium enrichment program is solely for civilian energy generation. The Iranian government says it still needs to produce nuclear fuel domestically, as it wants to build more power plants for planned network of 20,000 megawatts by 2020 to satisfy the soaring electricity demand.
The United States, however, held that enriched uranium can be used for making nuclear fuel, and if refined much further, can provide material for bombs.
To convince Tehran to shut down its disputed uranium enrichment program, Russia made a move on Dec 17, 2007: it delivered the first batch of 80 tonnes of uranium fuel rods to Iran's Bushehr Plant.
As a matter of fact, the foreign ministers of the six nations met in September 2007, in New York, to exchange views on launching a new round of more severe sanctions against Iran; but no consensus was reached. As a result, the US-prodded sanction proposal aborted; and remains abandoned to this day due to the international backdrop.
First of all, the Iranian side compromised to the UN nuclear watchdog, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); and took a major step forward in cooperating with IAEA. Under the UN nuclear watchdog's supervision, Iran has verified that its uranium enrichment program is geared solely to producing civilian energy.
Secondly, a US intelligence estimate, released in December 2007, said Iran had given up its nuclear weapons program in 2003.
The US government; nevertheless, could not spare Iran on account of this. It will still look on Iran as a strengthened foe or a threat.
“Iran poses a threat to the US and the Middle East, despite a US intelligence assessment that Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003,” US Defense Secretary Robert Gates was quoted as saying.
The US also accused Iran of actively supporting insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as the Hezbollah and Hamas Islamic groups.
The US-allied European countries have been at odds on issues like sanction scope against Iran and whether to resort to military force.
Although Gates urged Iran's neighbors to cooperate more closely in defense to counter Tehran's policies and deter Iran from pursuing nuclear weapons; the Gulf Arab states are more concerned about regional stability – particularly the security of their oil-rich areas.
The recent confrontation between US Navy ships and Iranian vessels at the Strait of Hormuz is a worrisome incident which could escalate into a clash or even a regional war.
Faced with the thorny Iranian nuclear issue, no one can dispel the clouds accumulating from complicated situations and set forth golden rules of strategy that others will abide by.
By People's Daily Online
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