It’s unlikely that another World War would crop up in the presence of the United Nations, but US President George W Bush has an apprehension that a large-scale war of epic proportion could take the world by storm quite soon. At the heart of this potential World War III is the Iran nuclear issue and Mr. Bush underlines that the persistent refusal of Iran to give up its nuclear ambition could be the spark for it.
This week the US President sent a ripple of alarm when he declared that should Iran be allowed to carry on with its uranium enrichment project unabated, it could lead to another Great war, the first of the new millennium. The prediction might be somewhat rushed but the signs cannot be missed.
Since last when Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad gave the go ahead for nuclear development, the US has been the leading country in forcing Iran to back down under international pressure. UN’s IAEA inspectors are still to confirm that Iran is building a nuclear bomb but the Bush administration is convinced that Iran wants to go nuclear.
Mr. Bush’s fears that Iran could use its nuclear facilities for destructive purposes are not without any reason. President Ahmadinejad is strictly anti-Israel and has called for the eradication of the nation altogether. Iran is also suspected to be actively contributing to the insurgency in Iraq and has a bad human rights record.
Mr. Bush wants military actions against Iran, however, the United Nations and the Democrats in the US political arena are against the proposal. While the Democrats, who control the US Congress, do agree that Iran is a threat, they support diplomacy and peaceful negotiations. The Republicans on the other hand want to rush into a military attack on Iran.
Mr. Bush has only 15 months left in office and his measure to tackle the Iran nuclear controversy epitomizes the frustration that the US president is going through at the moment. His war in Iraq has been labeled as a failure and he is now trying to restore some credibility in his administrative polices by trying to unite the world against Iran.
Image Source: Visiting DC
Source: The Washington Post
