Tag: iran

Europe Fears a Summer Attack on Iran

MUNICH — The appeals to Israel by numerous European diplomats attending the Munich security conference last weekend have led to growing concern that Israeli plans to attack Iran are imminent. The very number of warnings to Israel, and the emphasis with which diplomats have expressed concern, suggests that Israeli plans to attack Iran are real … Continue reading “Europe Fears a Summer Attack on Iran”

Israel and Iran Agree on Nuclear Ambiguity

JERUSALEM – Will Israel attack Iran’s nuclear facilities this spring? That is a question dominating the international agenda. Meanwhile, the grand project of a nuclear weapon–free Middle East is relegated to the utopian “day after” a solution is found to the Islamic republic’s atomic program. Strangely enough, Israeli public opinion has no clear opinion on … Continue reading “Israel and Iran Agree on Nuclear Ambiguity”

Who Wants War With Iran?

Appearing alongside CIA Director David Petraeus before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence last week, James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, said of Iran: “We don’t believe they’ve actually made the decision to go ahead with a nuclear weapon.” Before the hearing, as James Fallows of The Atlantic reports, Clapper released his “Worldwide Threat … Continue reading “Who Wants War With Iran?”

Lawmakers, ‘Experts’ Spin Tales of Iranian Terror in Latin America 

Through its ties with Venezuela and other nations in Latin America, Iran is building an anti-US alliance in the Western Hemisphere that poses a direct, imminent threat to the United States, an influential US lawmaker said Thursday. The remark from House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairwoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, author of sanctions legislation targeting Iran that was … Continue reading “Lawmakers, ‘Experts’ Spin Tales of Iranian Terror in Latin America “

Dempsey Told Israelis US Won’t Join Their War on Iran

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey told Israeli leaders Jan. 20 that the United States would not participate in a war against Iran begun by Israel without prior agreement from Washington, according to accounts from well-placed senior military officers.Dempsey’s warning, conveyed to both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister … Continue reading “Dempsey Told Israelis US Won’t Join Their War on Iran”

US Group Urges ‘More Credible’ Military Threat Against Iran

The administration of President Barack Obama should take steps to make threats of a possible U.S. or Israeli attack against Iran more credible, according to the fourth in a series of studies released Wednesday by a 13-man “bipartisan” task force dominated by Iran hawks. Among other steps, Washington should increase its naval deployments to the … Continue reading “US Group Urges ‘More Credible’ Military Threat Against Iran”

Divining the Truth About Iran

Watching top U.S. intelligence officials present the annual “Worldwide Threat Assessment” before the Senate Intelligence Committee, I found myself wondering if they would depart from the key (if politically delicate) consensus judgment that Iran is NOT working on a nuclear weapon. In last year’s briefing, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper had stood firm on … Continue reading “Divining the Truth About Iran”

Another War on the Cheap

There has been altogether too much stuff in the media lately about how Iran is not really a threat to anyone and how even some prominent Israelis don’t really believe that they have to go to war (or have Washington go to war on their behalf). It was perhaps inevitable that there would be some … Continue reading “Another War on the Cheap”

No Exit in the Persian Gulf?

When it comes to U.S. policy toward Iran, irony is the name of the game. Where to begin? The increasingly fierce sanctions that the Obama administration is seeking to impose on that country’s oil business will undoubtedly cause further problems for its economy and further pain to ordinary Iranians. But they are likely to be … Continue reading “No Exit in the Persian Gulf?”