The Deccan Herald of Bangalore of February 14, 2006 has reprinted an article from The Guardian of London which says that "A surprise American or Israeli air strike on Iranian nuclear sites could cause a large number of civilian as well as military casualties". The author of the report, Prof. Paul Rodgers concludes "…It follows that
military action should be firmly ruled out and alternative strategies developed." This report is concurrent with various rumours being circulated in the media quoting this or that US source about the possibility of strikes against Iran. The matter has come to head with the constant bullying of Iran by the USA through the UN watchdog agency, the IAEA. The latter has never been able to prove that Iran has been in contravention of any of its treaty obligations. Despite this and Iran’s voluntary agreeing to additional protocols there is now the possibility of the referral of Iran to the UN Security Council and the possibility of sanctions. Iran, for its part, has consistently maintained that these activities are ultra vires and has now threatened to end any non-binding co-operation, including unannounced inspections of the IAEA.
The matter is of great significance to all thinking Indian people, that despite great opposition to the bullying of Iran from all sections of the Indian people, the UPA Government has decided that India would vote against Iran at the IAEA, thereby falling in line with the dictate of the USA and the European Union countries on the board of the IAEA. Several experts have proved that the entire gamut of agreements on fissile materials and other nuclear regimes such as the NPT are discriminatory and favour only the established nuclear club, mainly the big powers and some recent entrants such as India and Pakistan and other unproven powers such as Israel and South Africa.
This being the matter, the present hysteria surrounding Iran’s nuclear activities is the content of another reprehensible chapter in the new world order where all national sovereignty is to be trampled underfoot by the USA and its hangers on. All thinking Indian’s must support the just right of Iran to pursue its peaceful nuclear programme. It is only the Iranian people who have the right to question the activities of their Government, peaceful or not. It is an opportunity to question the paradigm of ‘might is right’ and US brinkmanship in the matter of Iran’s nuclear programme.
