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Iran

Iran’s nuclear program poses a serious challenge to international security and regional stability. While it is unclear that the Islamic Republic has definitively decided to build nuclear weapons, the country’s evasion of its responsibilities under the international Non-Proliferation Treaty renders it suspect. Following is news, analysis and opinion from Ploughshares Fund staff, grantees and guests on the ongoing struggle to deal with nuclear weapons in Iran.
David Albright on the Tavis Smiley Show
Peddling Peril: Tavis Smiley interviews David Albright
Television commentator Tavis Smiley talks to physicist David Albright about his new book, Peddling Peril: How the Secret Nuclear Trade Arms America's Enemies.  Albright is founder and president of the  Institute for Science and International Security, which has received years of support from Ploughshares Fund.  In answer to Sm Read more »
Posted by Deborah Bain on April 10, 2010
South Asia, Middle East & Persian Gulf, Nuclear Weapons, Russia, Nuclear Terrorism, Proliferation, U.S. Nuclear Policy, Nuclear Materials, Iran, United States
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Cohen: We look at Iran and see ourselves
Ploughshares Fund grantee Avner Cohen writes in Haaretz that "if Israel takes military action against Iran, it will be one of the biggest decisions in the history of the state. The risks involved will make it unprecedented."  Yet, he observes, instead of open public discussion about the risks of such a move, the Israeli press "makes demagogic use of statements that intensify the message of the politics of fear. Read more »
Posted by Deborah Bain on April 5, 2010
Middle East & Persian Gulf, Nuclear States, Nuclear Weapons, Proliferation, Iran, Conflict & Regional Security
israeli_atomic_grenades and orthodox jews waving in support
Israel's options on Iran
The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) said in a new report that low-yield tactical nuclear warheads would be one way for the Israelis to destroy Iranian uranium enrichment plants in remote, dug-in fortifications.   But other independent experts are on record warning that such a scenario is based on the "myth" of a clean atomic attack and would be too politically hazardous to justify. In  "Options in Dealing with Iran's Nuclear Read more »
Posted on March 26, 2010
Israel, Middle East & Persian Gulf, Nuclear Weapons, Iran
norooz
U.S. Congress officially recognizes Iranian New Year
The Senate unanimously approved the Norooz Resolution (S.Res.463), granting official recognition for Norooz, the Iranian New Year, celebrating Iran's rich cultural traditions, expressing appreciation to Iranian Americans for their contributions to society, and wishing Iranian Americans and the Iranian people a prosperous new year.  "In honoring Norooz, Congress recognizes that Iran cannot be viewed merely through the prism of conflict with Iran's government, but that we can foster mutual respect and cooperation directly with the Iranian people," said Read more »
Posted on March 24, 2010
Nuclear States, Iran
peddling peril
Peddling Peril: David Albright on Fresh Air
Fresh Air host Terry Gross talks to David Albright, author of the new book Peddling Peril on Thursday's program.  Read more »
Posted on March 18, 2010
South Asia, Middle East & Persian Gulf, North Korea, Nuclear Weapons, Proliferation, Iran, United States
yellow cake uranium
Syria Received North Korean "Yellowcake" Uranium, Report Says
Syria in 2007 received approximately 45 tons of raw uranium from North Korea for use in producing fuel for a secret nuclear reactor, informed military and diplomatic sources told Kyodo News on Saturday (see GSN, Feb. 26). An Israeli air assault destroyed the undeclared reactor not long after Syria received shipment of the material and the "yellowcake" uranium is thought to have been sent to Iran in summer 2009, a Western diplomatic source said. Read more »
Posted on March 8, 2010
Middle East & Persian Gulf, North Korea, Nuclear States, Nuclear Weapons, Proliferation, Nuclear Materials, Iran
iranian sunset
The Iranian Riddle
The Iranian government has a deliberate policy aimed at confusing the outside world about its goals and decision-making processes, writes Trita Parsi, president of the National Iranian American Council in TIME Magazine. "The rulers in Tehran think that opacity and the perception of unpredictability buy them security. Given that intent, it is hardly surprising that Washington has had such a difficult time. Read more »
Posted on March 5, 2010
Middle East & Persian Gulf, Nuclear States, Iran
david albright
How Iran Obtains U.S. Technology
The Justice Department has indicted over 100 alleged smugglers working for Iran in the past three years, but many remain out of reach. According to David Albright, president of the Ploughshares-funded Institute for Science and International Security, Dubai is cracking down on smugglers who use the country as an "intermediate point" to send technology to Iran. Watch Albright’s interview here. Read more »
Posted on March 3, 2010
Middle East & Persian Gulf, Nuclear States, Nuclear Weapons, Proliferation, Iran, smuggling
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Iranian threat to destroy Israel doesn't hold up
What if Israeli leaders and pundits had reacted to the Iranian nuclear program in a completely different way than they actually have, asks Ploughshares Fund grantee Avner Cohen in an op-ed in Haaretz.  Rather than viewing the possibility of an Iranian bomb as an "existential threat," he argues, it should be viewed as what it is, a major political problem that should be addressed politically. Read more »
Posted by Deborah Bain on February 26, 2010
Middle East & Persian Gulf, Nuclear Weapons, Proliferation, Iran
Human Rights Commission, Senate Commitee
NIAC's Trita Parsi testifies to Congress on human rights in Iran
National Iranian American Council President Trita Parsi testified in Congress yesterday about the importance of addressing the human rights situation in Iran, and why Iran is sensitive to pressure on human rights. Parsi provided a series of eight recommendations including breaking the silence on human rights abuses, pressuring Iran at international forums, and securing a UN Envoy. Read more »
Posted on February 26, 2010
Nuclear States, Iran