Iran’s bomb contours

Iran’s bomb is back in the spotlight. Official declarations emanating from the US House of Representatives and the IAEA say that Tehran is inches away from producing a crude device with enough fissile for a nuclear bomb. Though there are still doubts that the Islamic Republic is far away from formally churning out a nuclear device, the fact that it has mastered the technology to create a dirty bomb in “12 days’ timeframe” has sent alarms ringing. The concern was voiced by US Under-Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl in a testimony as Republican lawmakers went on to question the rationale behind reviving JCPOA, which was unilaterally scrapped by the Trump administration in 2018. The enigma is that had the 2015 signed P5+1 international accord been in force to this day, the obsession of denuclearising Iran’s clandestine programme would have been realised.

Let’s analyse the equation in its totality. If it is established that Iran is literally capable of producing a nuclear device in 12 days, then it goes without saying that it has gone back on its promise not to build a bomb. Likewise, IAEA’s confirmation that uranium particles have been enriched to 83.7% purity is another sign that monitoring of sites had taken a backseat all these years. If so, then none but the US is to be blamed. It is the White House under President Trump that threw spanner in the works, and sabotaged the masterpiece of disarmament struck by his predecessor, Barack Obama, in cultivating Iran for a return to a non-nuclear regime. Moreover, the labour of China, Russia and European allies in convincing Iran to look beyond the bomb, and steer clear its path for confidence building measures, went down the drain owing to Washington’s adamancy.

The West’s policy perception towards Iran is one of bias and mistrust. It has been content with slapping economic sanctions, and that has not worked to this day. What is needed is an instant return to JCPOA, and marshaling the revolutionary state to sign in for a thaw. It serves the purpose of peace and congeniality.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 3^rd, 2023.

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