The European Union banned imports of oil from Iran on Monday and imposed a number of other economic sanctions, joining the United States in a new round of measures aimed at deflecting Tehran\’s nuclear development program.
Iran\’s foreign minister warned Arab neighbors on Thursday not to put themselves in a \”dangerous position\” by aligning themselves too closely with the United States in the escalating dispute over Tehran\’s nuclear activity.
The U.N. nuclear watchdog chief said it was his duty to warn the world about suspected Iranian activities that point to plans to develop atomic bombs, maintaining pressure on Tehran ahead of rare talks between Iran and his agency expected this month.
In endorsing bombing Iran as a neat way to address Iran’s nuclear program, Matthew Kroenig makes the case that the theoretical nightmare of a nuclear Iran could be more or less eliminated, and that even if that can’t be fully accomplished, the bombing could buy time. But the logic of his argument does not acknowledge that the facts on the ground are not so clear.
The United States and Iran are on a path toward direct armed conflict. In early October, U.S. officials accused Iranian operatives of planning to assassinate Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the United States on American soil. In early January, Tehran sentenced to death an American citizen visiting family in Iran on charges of alleged espionage.
The sound of an apparent explosion was heard from Iran\’s Isfahan city on Monday afternoon, the head of the judiciary in the province said, but the province\’s deputy governor denied that there had been a big blast.
The board of governors of the United Nations’ nuclear agency has agreed on a draft resolution that harshly criticizes Iran, but refrains from calling for new sanctions.
The 35-nation board of the U.N. nuclear watchdog looked set on Friday to censure Iran over mounting suspicions it is seeking to develop atom bombs, after the six big powers overcame divisions on how to best deal with a defiant Tehran.
Arab states and Israel plan to attend a rare round of talks next week on efforts to free the world of nuclear weapons but Iran has yet to say whether it will take part, diplomats said on Wednesday.
Iran\’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned the United States and Israel on Thursday not to launch military action against its nuclear sites, saying it would be met with \”iron fists,\” state television reported.
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