EU stance on Iran

[Pirilao]

Should the EU harden its stance over Iran's nuclear programme?

28 Jun 2005

 

The European Union has said it will not change its policy towards Iran after hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was elected president of the country. Germany, France and Britain are leading negotiations with Tehran on its nuclear programme, which Washington says is aimed at building an atomic bomb. Do you think the EU should harden its stance on Iran's nuclear programme?

[Haken]

Sure, although, with the election of new, consevative president, they going to have a hard time doing so. On the bright sight, I don't think any modern country shall use such weapons at this period of time.

[Paranoid schizo]

We had a 'hard line' with Iraq - and look where that got us. And I'm on about BEFORE the war.

 

I don't think Western countries will ever really understand the way Middle Eastern countries think. Thats a volatile place. If I was there, I'd sure as hell want as many nukes as possible, just to garauntee my country's survival. Anyone remember MAD?

[Senator Gaius]

We may not understand them, but we can hardly ignore them when they have big missiles.

[Pirilao]

I think the EU had better harden its efforts on the programme.

For me, the European way of facing the problems is based on the intelligence, on the reason and on the science, not on strength.

If the programme is succesful, the Irani and North Korean nuclear programmes would become obsolete and useless.

[Orioni]

If I'm not mistaken, some European nations are participating in the construction of it's nuclear plant. Just like France was involved in the building of Saddam's nuclear power plant in the eighties.

[Byzantium Nova]

There is no need to change any policies.

 

US government can talk all it wants but before they go and destroy all nukes and nuclear plants in US they have no point talking. And I know this is not going to happen so I would just ignore this nonsense about nukes.

[Kant]

Other countries are/were allowed to build nuclear power plants and nuclear weapons, middle eastern countries have a right to if they see it fit. Yes the region is unstable, but perhaps if they have the chance to fight each other without foreign intervention, they will get tired of it soon enough. I kinda see the Middle East as what Europa was pre 1914, with all the tension and all. I doubt they would be foolish enough to point nuclear weapons at western countries, who could wipe out their existance.

 

Even if they harden their stance on Irans programme, the most i can see the EU doing is writing letters to them, and telling them to stop doing it. After going into Iraq and seeing the public opinion with that, not to many countries would be willing to back their words up with action.

[Amnalos]

Speaking of nuclear power plants, I hear the first fusion reactor is to be built in France. This would be excellent. Unlike nuclear fission, where energy is released by splitting heavy atoms, fusion releases energy by fusing light nuclei together. All the energy is released as light and heat- there is very little radiocative waste produced.

[Tamurin]

You are missing the point.

 

If Europe doesn't stop the Irani programme, the US will do.

If the US don't stop the Irani programme, the Israelis will definitely do it, like they destroyed the iraqi nuclear research center in the early 80s.

 

Israel will never (with very good reason) allow a neighbour to have nuclear weapons and a sophisticated deployment system.

 

Also, all nuclear powers (including Stalin's Soviet Union and Mao's China) were led by people with common sense. We are now seeing the first nuclear nations without such leaders:

 

 

- North Corea, led by Kim Jong Il, who's actions are less predictable than the weather

 

- Iran, led by this ultra-conservative guy. I remind everyone, that Iran is the major power behind the Hamas and the Hisbollah, financing, supplying and training both terrorist groups. Why not sell them nuclear or radiological weapons?

 

- Pakistan, currently led by President General Musharraf. But what if he dies? He's survived a couple of assassination attempts, but he won't for always. The pakistani taliban are powerful and their numbers are going. If they overthrow the government, then there will be a 100 million+ islamic nation with nuclear weapons led by Taliban.

 

 

We failed in stopping this. Now we have to live with the constant threat, that one day one of our cities (or a couple of them) might be burned by nuclear fire, set by a suicide-bomber, built by one of these nations.

 

 

God 'bless' appeasement politicians. They failed with Hitler, they failed again.

[Orioni]

Just a thought: why does a nation with one of the worlds largest oil reserves need to invest in nuclear energy for their energy provision?

[Ide Jima]

They use the oil to grease themselves... ever wondered why the Iranians are all so slimey?

[Tamurin]

I guess, that they think like north corea: if they have nuclear weapons, they're safe from any attack from the US.

 

I've changed my mind about this: Let them have their nukes. They're of no use to them.

 

If they use them to threaten neighbors: Useless. More or less everyone of them has nuclear weapons or is protected by a friendly nation with one.

 

If they use nuclear weapons in war, many, many, many will fly back to their home and destroy it. Many cities would be destroyed, but Iran would be completely wiped out.

 

If they assist terrorist groups to built nuclear weapons (or even give them one), a nuclear retaliation will be the answer. The victim would surely find out who did this.

 

So, if they use nuclear weapons passively or actively, they won't do them any good. They'll just cost a lot of money and worsen relations to other nations.

[Orioni]

I'm not sure if it's wise to "let them have their nukes". I could inspire other nations to do so. I remember South-Africa terminated it's nuclear program, and Libya did the same (so they claim).

 

Comparing Iran with North-Korea is possible on some fronts: both have a history of was with a neighbour (Iran/Iraq, North-K/South-K), and both are near to a permanent member of the UN Security Counsel (Iran: Russia; North-K: China). However, while Iran has something to offer (oil), North-K has few natural resources. They rely heavily on import, from food to energy.

[Zalmoxium]

If Israel can have nuclear weapons, then Iran can.

[Damak Var]

The Arab nations in my opinion, just cannot be trusted. Israel is alright, and I respect them. I trust Israel with nukes. Some people say that they have the right to have nuclear weapons, since a lot of other countries do. Well they won't be saying that when they put a scud missle on a cargo barge. It doesn't even have to be detonated in the city, just in the sea near a city. The EMP charge alone would cause havoc.

Edited June 7, 2006 by BlackJackEmperor (see edit history)

[Drachereich]

If America can have a nuclear program why can't anyone else?

[Zalmoxium]

The Arab nations in my opinion, just cannot be trusted. Israel is alright, and I respect them. I trust Israel with nukes. Some people say that they have the right to have nuclear weapons, since a lot of other countries do. Well they won't be saying that when they put a scud missle on a cargo barge. It doesn't even have to be detonated in the city, just in the sea near a city. The EMP charge alone would cause havoc.

How is Israel alright?

Just today, they killed again. 6 dead, 3 of them children. Many wounded.

Obviously, the Isaelis have had to deal with a lot of trouble from the Palestinians also - but this all wouldn't be happening if the UN hadn't been so arrogant as to evict the palestinians from their homeland. If a peaceful solution through which everyone is happy cannot be found/reached, then the solution does not exist, and no more progress in the matter should/can be made. The Palestinians didn't want to share their land in the way the UN decreed. its THEIR LAND. The UN and the zionists had no right to do what they did, and whats happening in Palestine today is a reverberation of UN and Zionist idiocy.

I wish Israel luck - they've made alot of enemies - and they deserve them.

[Orioni]

I heard an Israeli warship shelled a Palestinian beach and killed a family that was picknicking. Perhaps they mistook some children playing in the sand for terrorist trying to dig yet another tunnel.

 

Will the world ever learn?

[Azores]

If America can have a nuclear program why can't anyone else?

Maybe because America is a liberal democracy, and Iran is not.