There have already been three Security Council resolutions and two rounds of sanc-tions to stop Iran from doing what it considers its legal right under the Non Prolifera-tion Treaty. The NPT does not impose any restriction on its signatory members to  exploit nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. Or, to be specific, not to  enrich uranium.

Another aspect of Iran’s nuclear controversy is that the IAEA is being sidelined by the so-called enlightened West and a diplomatic offensive coupled with  a  demonising smearing campaign of slander and insult unleashed against Iran,  disallows it any honour it deserves as an independent, sovereign cultured  nation.

Its leaders, branded as a bunch of rogues, are being painted as ‘nuclear bomb  hungry scamps’ to grab the bomb to destroy the West along with Israel. How obnoxious, hateful and condemnable is this perception that Bush and his acolytes in the West have created about Iran to reverse its progress in nuclear technology can be gauged by the fact that all statements and arguments  forwarded against Iran have proved to be illegal, illogical, unethical and futile to the extreme.

Whereas IAEA has expressed satisfaction over its progress on Iran’s nuclear  question and its director-general, Mohamed ElBaradei, has continuously reported he had found no indication that Iran had ever intended to have a nuclear weapons program, the hawkish, immoral, unthinking and petty leaders of the West consider it not more than a ‘diversion’ on part of Iran.

Also last week acting in good faith and tacit understanding, that such move would clear all doubts regarding its nuclear programme, Iran handed over to the IAEA a document containing design information that could help to make nuclear weapon parts.

Iran’s reassuring proactive gesture has to a certain extent must have enhanced  international community’s trust regarding Iran’s atomic drive that it has always  claimed to be peaceful and purely to generate electricity for a growing population.

Also last week in its 10 page report that largely focussed on Iran’s past activities  and black-market purchases and enrichment activity the IAEA concluded that ‘Iran’s statements are consistent with ... information available to the agency.’ It said, ‘Iran has provided sufficient access to individuals and has responded in a timely manner to questions, and provide (needed) clarifications and amplifications.’

It was nothing less than a slap on Mr. Bush and his war mongering acolytes who, with ever-increasing intensity, have been making a case for military action against Iran over its nuclear programme.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, President of Iran expressed his satisfaction on the report that according to him had vindicated Iran’s position on its nuclear programme. Last Friday he said the report disproved American allegations that Iran was pursuing nuclear weapons. He rightfully called on the Bush administration to apologize for making false accusations against Iran. He said, ‘The whole world saw that their (U.S.) allegations were not true and that Iran’s activities are clean and peaceful.’

Iran’s new chief negotiator, Saeed Jalili, has also heralded the IAEA’s report for proving that ‘most ambiguities’ about Tehran’s program have been removed. He said the U.N. agency showed that allegations about Iran trying to subvert a peaceful energy program to develop the world’s deadliest weapon are “baseless.”

Bush is not listening. He is pressing ahead with new round of sanctions, although, he is facing tougher stance from China and Russia. His reading of the IAEA report has entirely been negative: leaders’ pessimism, too often, has lead to death and destruction at gigantic levels irreversibly.

The world of Islam needs to come out of its deep, excruciating slumber of  inactivity,  turpitudes, factional division, religious bias and intellectual  corruption, and realise the gravity of situation. One Muslim State after another is being targeted on one pretext or the other. Today almost all hot spots of the world involve Muslims in one way or the other. No Islamic country has been allowed unhindered access to knowledge to deliver itself from the yoke of the 
West.

With the largest concentration of military assets outside the US, Bush is bullying the West to its side for tougher sanctions against Iran, threatening direct strikes against Iran’s nuclear installations in case an agreement on tougher UN sanctions is not reached.

By siding with the US to avoid US air strikes inside Iran, the West is 
unnecessarily  giving currency to the perception that Iran’s nuclear programme is hostile to the world peace. The US is benefiting from its aggressive posture,  whereas Iran, despite its honesty, openness and docile cooperation with the IAEA and its respect to Inter-national law, stands disadvantaged.

Why should Iran not enrich uranium at home whereas under the NPT, whose  pioneering signatory is Iran, it has got this right to do so. No international law prevents Iran from doing so.

Under the influence of Zionist-Jewish lobbies at home, Bush, whose religious and intellectuals credential are in doubt, is acting as a Hitler. His hawkish, thoughtless and ,at times, incongruous vitriols against Iran are helping no one.

Whether Iran is pursuing peaceful nuclear programme or not does not concern  much the policy makers at Pentagon and Capitol Hill. The issue itself is a ruse for Bush to hurt Iran.

Already supra-UNSC measures and diplomacy is in place. Bush administration is vying for a tough set of sanctions by ad hoc coalition that would include the US, European Union and Japan.

They hope that the threat of aerial strikes might woo China and Russia to cave in as both want to save the region of yet another crisis. However, very few doubt that the sanctions will not be so effective as to force Iran to abandon its nuclear programme at the cost of its national pride.

Pushed to the corner Iran might revise its cooperation with IAEA altogether and demand the opening up of Israel’s nuclear programme for a bigger regional deal. Iran will not be wrong in doing so. The Leadership in the West should  display greater insight into the issue than it has done so far.

Information

Another aspect of Iran’s nuclear controversy  is that the IAEA is being 
sidelined by the so-called enlightened West 
and a diplomatic offensive coupled with a 
demonising smearing campaign of slander 
and insult unleashed against Iran, disallows 
it any honour it deserves as an independent, 
sovereign cultured nation.

First appeared in Pakistan Observer on November 27, 2007