From Iran's point of view, they'd love to add a new partner every two or three years just to keep things going until they develop their nuclear weapons.
Some in the West have signed on to this strategy, too, I think, because they don't want to admit they are unwilling to stop Iran. When Iran gets nuclear weapons, these Westerners can then say that it is too risky to roll back Iran's nuclear arsenal. Darn the luck. Let's learn to love the Persian bomb.
Iran's strategy and our unrealistic expectation that Iran will actually agree to end their nuclear weapons ambitions should be clear:
Iran welcomes nuclear talks with the United States and other countries, Tehran's top nuclear negotiator said Monday.
The negotiator, Saeed Jalili, made the comments during a telephone call with the European Union's foreign policy chief, state television reported. During the conversation, Jalili said the talks should be aimed at "constructive cooperation" between countries.
Last week, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran was open to talks — but only if they were based on respect for Iran's rights, suggesting the West should not try to force Tehran to stop uranium enrichment. Jalili's comments appeared to be more of a definitive answer, but he stressed that Iran would issue an official response to the invitation soon, the TV reported. He did not elaborate.
I don't understand why we think we can talk Iran into giving up their nuclear weapons. Yet there truly are dunderheads who believe we can and should seek a bargain with the mullahs of Iran.
And God help us, not all of them are just Times opinion writers. Some of them staff our State Department.
This is going to turn out just swell, I'm sure.
