President Biden’s strategy to contain and de-escalate Iran’s state-sponsored terrorism is failing as fears grow that Tehran moves closer to obtaining nuclear power, experts warn.
Gabriel Noronha, a former US State Department adviser on Iran, said Sunday that Biden’s bid to “bribe” Iran to halt its nuclear advances through economic pressure and oil sanctions has failed.
“Iran moved forward with its nuclear program anyway and pocketed the additional revenue from oil sales to increase funding for its terrorist proxies,” Noronha told Fox News Digital. “We have not had any victories on Iran’s record in the last three years, but we have seen its strength return from its weakened state during the maximum pressure policy.”
Last month, a confidential report from the International Atomic Energy Agency published by Reuters indicated that Iran had “increased its production of highly enriched uranium,” reversing an earlier production reduction from mid-2023.
Reports claim that Iran is close to completing an atomic bomb. fake images
The report also suggested that about 90% of the uranium Iran is enriching at its sprawling Natanz complex “is weapons-grade.”
The report came as David Albright, a physicist and founder of the Institute for Science and International Security, issued his own warning that the world should worry about Tehran’s nuclear capabilities in 2024.
In their new report titled “How Quickly Could Iran Build Nuclear Weapons Today?” Albright stated that Tehran has already completed the facilities necessary to build its own nuclear arsenal.
The United States and the United Kingdom launched targeted airstrikes against Houthi terrorists in Yemen on Friday and Saturday. Via REUTERS
“Iran can quickly produce enough nuclear weapons-grade uranium, something it was unable to do in 2003,” wrote the former UN weapons inspector in Iraq.
“Today, it would only take a week to produce enough for its first nuclear weapon,” Albright said. “You could have enough weapons-grade uranium for six weapons in a month, and after five months of producing weapons-grade uranium, you could have enough for 12.”
Concerns about Tehran’s nuclear capabilities come as the stability of the Middle East is at stake due to conflicts involving Iranian-backed terrorist groups in the region.
Hamas’ war with Israel entered its 100th day on Sunday with no signs of slowing, as the fighting has claimed more than 23,000 lives in Gaza and 1,200 in Israel, an unprecedented loss of life in the history of the intra-Israeli conflict. and Palestinians.
And as the war continues, Hezbollah terrorists have continued to launch missile attacks against the Jewish state, while Israel counterattacks with its own series of airstrikes.
As the war threatens to spread along the Israel-Lebanon border, the Red Sea has seen similar tensions flare as Houthi rebels disrupt supply lines, and US and British ships carry out airstrikes against the terrorist group in recent days.
Both Iran-backed terrorist groups have said they have launched attacks in their respective areas as a show of solidarity with Hamas.
Houthi leaders say their goal is to stop Israel’s campaign to eradicate Hamas from Gaza and allow aid to reach Gaza. fake images
Notably, the Biden administration removed the Houthi group from the foreign terrorist organization list in 2021, a change from the Trump administration.
Biden told reporters last week that he believes they are terrorists, but it is unclear whether the Houthis will be back on the list.
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As Iranian-sponsored terrorist groups are bringing chaos to the region, Noronha called on the United States to lead a more aggressive push to stop the influence of Tehran’s nuclear advances.
“The United States needs to restart a diplomatic pressure campaign to get nations around the world to impose terrorist sanctions on Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, as well as its proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis,” Noronha told Fox.
“Dozens of countries in the West have not sanctioned these groups and, as a result, they are places where these terrorist groups can raise funds and conduct activities without proper scrutiny,” he added.
Noronha noted that the biggest blow the United States could deal to Iran would lie in reinstating the toughest possible oil sanctions, since “oil sales are the lifeblood of the regime’s terrorism financing.”
The State Department says “all options” remain on the table in terms of Iran’s nuclear goals. AP
A State Department representative said Biden and the United States remain committed to ensuring that “Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon.
“As the Secretary [of State] As you said, we always prefer diplomacy to achieve that goal, but given Iran’s nuclear escalations and its lack of cooperation with the [International Atomic Energy Agency]”Unfortunately we are very far from something like this at the moment,” the spokesperson said.
The officials added that Iran remains the world leader in state-sponsored terrorism and human rights abuse, and that the United States and its allies are committed to confronting Tehran on these issues.
“Our policy focuses on practical ways to counter these threats,” the representative said. That said, we are constantly evaluating our approach toward Iran and finding additional ways to add pressure.”
With post cables
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Source: vtt.edu.vn