Dear friends, I have been in Iran numerous times, even in the disputed nuclear research reactor in Tehran. I don’t believe that Iran wants nuclear weapons. The immense US pressure on Iran is a try to force their will onto an Islamic country that refuses to dance to the tune of Uncle Sam – a country that had the “audacity” to chase away its CIA-sponsored Shah. The following 5 facts indicate that Iran doesn’t want the bomb:

1) A handful of bombs doesn’t help as long as Iran is surrounded by bombs. The USA possesses 7,300 nuclear warheads, France and the UK possess 525, and Israel between 80 and 400. Also, let’s not forget Russia’s arsenal of 8,000 nuclear warheads!

2) The Supreme Leader of Iran’s irrevocable Fatwa, stating that the bomb was against Islam.

3) There is national Iranian agreement against nuclear weapons, which is supported by both the government and the opposition.

4) The well-known fact about nuclear strategy that, with the exception of the USA and Russia, there’s a general rule for everyone: “Whoever shoots first will die second.” Iran would cease to exist only twenty minutes after having carried out a nuclear attack on Israel.

5) The power ratio: Iran’s military budget amounts to less than 4% of the US budget. Unlike the USA or Israel, Iran is no offensive-militaristic country.

I have been a CDU/CSU(*)-spokesman for arms control policy for many years. Like former Chancellor Helmut Schmidt, I feel that all nuclear weapons should be abolished. They are a curse, and Hiroshima and Nagasaki are proof to that. But I don’t think that Iran is a danger to world peace. Not even if they had a bomb. I am strongly against Iran having it – without ifs or buts. Yet, Iran hasn’t attacked even a single country in the past two centuries.

The West knows that. Hence, it should – in the seven remaining months of negotiation – aim at compromises that make the building of the Iranian bomb near-impossible while preserving Iran’s national dignity. The sooner and wider the West ends its sanctions against the Iranian population, the easier it will be to solve the remaining problems.

Here’s the central question: will Obama be strong enough to push through his plan to quickly lift the sanctions – despite the opposition of the Republicans and of Israel? In Vienna, Israel has once again put the US delegation under massive pressure and thus hardened their position. Shortly before the end of the negotiation period, the Israeli government threatened with a military strike against Iran in case of a “bad agreement”. Later on, Israeli Prime Minister Netanjahu expressed on BBC that he was happy that no agreement was reached yesterday.

The nuclear dispute with Iran is an unjust dispute. Iran is judged based on a standard that never was applied on US allies, such as Israel or India. Like India, Israel never signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and secretly acquired 80 to 400 nuclear weapons. However, ironically, it is Israel – the main violator of the “non-proliferation policy” – that is Iran’s most fervent accuser. Somehow, that is absurd!

Compromises are a thousand times better than the previous Western “strategy”
– of sanctions on vital medicines against diseases, such as cancer or MS;
– of illegal cyber-attacks against Iranian nuclear facilities;
– of brutally murdering an Iranian nuclear scientist, and
– of demonizing Iran.

Much like every other country, Iran should be able to develop. Like every other state signatory to the non-proliferation agreement, Iran has the right to enrich nuclear material for civil purposes. In order to do so, Iran needs a certain number of centrifuges. Couldn’t Iran involve other states in this enrichment process? Iran seems to be willing to actively make Russia, Germany, and other countries part of the enrichment process via a joint venture. That’s an groundbreaking, sensational proposal. The West should take Iran on its word.

Upon reaching an agreement in negotiations with Iran, the world should turn to other, more important points of the nuclear non-proliferation agreement: the complete nuclear disarmament of all of the nuclear-weapon states, including the USA, Russia, France, and Great Britain. Those countries have been violating the contract for years by not disposing of their nuclear arsenal in its entirety – this is contrary to what had been agreed on.

Also, the international community should dedicate itself to the control of the Israeli nuclear weapons that were all acquired secretly with Western assistance. It is unacceptable that countries like Israel simply don’t sign the nuclear non-proliferation agreement to then build up a nuclear arsenal. Israeli nuclear weapons are as evil than the rest. That is why all of the points of the (hopefully) soon-to-be-made control agreement with Iran should also be applied to Israel. Equal rights and equal obligations for everyone!

Yours, JT

PS: REGARDING FERGUSON, USA. When I look at those pictures, I think to myself: shouldn’t the US government first overcome the racism in its own country before it tries to impose its ‘noble values’ on the Middle East by use of bombs and missiles? Shouldn’t they first put their own house in order instead of constantly pointing fingers at everyone else?

*CDU = Christian Democratic Union || CSU = Christian Social Union. Those are Germany’s two main conservative parties.