Not Iran! [Archives:2003/673/Viewpoint]

Two wars have taken place in the last two years, and we are now being faced with a disturbing concern faced by many in the region, and that is mounting pressure on Iran. The Islamic Republic of Iran is nowadays pressurized by the USA and other countries to give away its nuclear program as Iran's leaders emphasize that the program is only used for peaceful purposes. The country has continuously been the main target of US and Israeli accusations about issues ranging from human rights violations to plans to develop nuclear weapons, but one cannot but wonder if it could be a third target in the ongoing “preemptive wars” series.
Observers say that if the USA is interested in two issues, then indeed Iran could likely be a potential target. Those two issues are the control of oil resources around the oil-rich Caspian Sea and countries around it and the second is to secure Israel from any assumed threat from Iran's powerful military.
But yet again, all of those are mere assumptions and may not be built on solid evidence. Iran seems committed on the other hand to hold on tight to its rights in providing its people with energy from its nuclear facilities that have been standing there for so long.
Bringing the issue in such a particular time -after many years since the facilities have been started- has indeed raised more doubts about the reasons behind it.
The situation is somewhat critical, especially as the Iranian government had openly said it will not compromise on its right to nuclear technology or to conduct uranium enrichment despite mounting international pressure over its atomic program.
One cannot but wish that all of these steps do not have a hidden agenda. After all, I do not want to be dragged to the category of those believing in conspiracies made in the dark against certain nations. Nevertheless, I also do not want to feel too naive to understand what is going on.
I cannot predict what the US reaction to the Iranian insistence could be, but if it calls for sanctions against Iran for any reason, then I am afraid that history would be repeating itself and a new negative experience could be lived in the region. I just hope that such a measure will never be taken and things can be resolved through other means.
But if things develop to become another Iraq, then I don't think it could be another Iraq because this time the task would be harder as Iran cannot be underestimated.
I believe that if the worse scenario happens, then the double-standard strategy will eventually fail because people are now more aware about the situation. They know that a tiny country like Israel has so many nuclear weapons, while the rest are deprived of that for no legitimate reason.
Let us pray that things would not go that far, and we will still have our Islamic Republic of Iran safe, secure, and continue to bring pride to the Muslim world as a Muslim democracy with ambitions for more growth and prosperity.
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