Hi Bankole,

Long time, happy new year.

Nuclear weapons are weapons of mass destruction. Why develop them if you don't plan to use them one day?

If the US could invade Iraq based on outright lies and today people are being killed everyday as a direct consequence of such illegal invasion, what will stop the US from using nuclear weapon against any country tomorrow?

Do not forget that the US used atomic bombs in 2 civilian areas in Hiroshima and Nagasaki (the only country that has used atomic bombs against civilians in the world).

This is akin to what obtains in Nigeria today where the friends and relations of OBJ that are corrupt are not being indicted for corruption while his perceived and real enemies are. Is this right? Why complain about selective fight against corruption and support a policy that turns a blind eye when certain nations develop nuclear weapons and say no to others developing same.

No country can be trusted with a nuclear weapon so this issue or maturity and stability do not apply afterall both India and Pakistan have fought wars and are still not yet settled on Kashmir yet, sometime in 2000 the 2 nations (not signatories to the NPT) became nuclear nations within 2 weeks.

Today, they are talking peace, they both have nuclear weapons and yet none is threatening the other because they are both armed with the same weapon.

It is wrong for some countries to own them and at the same time prevent others from doing so.

Meanwhile, on Iran, there is no single evidence that they are developing a nuclear weapon. The current accusation is based on fears expressed by the West especially the US and of course Israel. Now, when has the right of a nation become subject to the feelings and fears of another?

Enjoy.

I could not have put it more bluntly. Kudos to you Afam. The issue here is, it is wrong for some countries to own them and at the same time prevent others from doing so. If nuclear weapons are so bad let the west destroy their stockpile,
then they would be taken seriously. Its an open secret America wants Israel to remain the main power player in the middle east. How come America is showing so much enthusiasm on Iran but failed to do same to N Korea. The NPT is useless if any nation can opt out.

@Tornadoz,

See, the issues are very clear and very straight forward but a lot of people prefer seeing things they way they like regardless of whether it makes sense or not.

It is like my neighbour buying a gun even when he is not a police man and asking me not to buy one for my own security, insisting that he can be trusted with his own gn but I cannot be trusted with mine, what rubbish!!!

If Iraq had developed nuclear weapons the US would never have thought about invading the country just as it did not contemplate invading North Korea.

Unfortunately, the world is full of people that ask for justice and equity while promoting injustice and double standards at will without even realizing it.

This is just balderdash

If my neighbour has a gun,that does not legitimise my acquiring one .No one can break the law and claim he can do so simply because his neighbour is breaking the law.

If we relate this to the Middle East,Isreal has not broken the law so the analogy does not apply.Isreal has never threatened Iran with military action prior to all this.Isreal has no land dispute with Iran nor any territorial claim to Iranian territory.

The Middle East will not be safer if there is a nuclear arms race.Iran is perceived as a threat not only by Isreal but by other Middle East nations.Remember it illegaly occupies parts of UAE territory.

Afam, I am sure you are quite capable of holding your own, but let express my support for your opinion. Your anology of the neighbours and guns truly reflects the situation.

Israel is believed to have nuclear capabilities. Who is asking them to dismantle ? During their war with Hebolah (an organisation which the whole world knows is at loggerheads with the established Lebanese govt.) They attacked with nuclear tipped bombs and also promised to send Lebanon back in time in civilization. Destroyed human lives at will and U.S refused to call for a truce and with a tongue in cheek supplied them with more weapons while accusing Iran of arming Hezbolah. Mind you, I am not denying Israel's right to self defence but stressing that all nations have equal inalienable right to self defence. Israeli/Lebanese story is too long and should be left for another day.

Back to Afam's neighbour. The police (U.N or US in this case) cannot tell Afam (Iran, DPRK,Nigeria etc) not to have a gun while they encourage his neighbour (Israel, US, UK, China, India etc) to acquire different types of guns and even exchange technology and intelligence with him on to out do Afam. That is lopsided justice.

The middle east and indeed the whole world would not be safer if there is nuclear arm race. Every nation should disarm if not those that aspire to have them should have them as a deterent. Since India and Pakistan became convinced of each others military capabilities they have chilled down in their Kashmir Skirmishes.

Talking about the land that Iran occupies illegally, do you know how many U.N resolutions Israel has refused to heed on occupied territories ? Occupation of other people's land is wrong therefore all nations engaged in such acts should withdraw and that includes Israel.

4PLAY Wrote

Remember it (Iran) illegaly occupies parts of UAE territory.

Er, Israel illegally occupies parts of Palestine and Syria. Please tell me, did you know this or you conveniently avoided it?

@FACE Welcome to the forum, am liking you already.

@Face,

Thanks for the comments. The truth of the matter is that the man 4play is always arguing blindly (not the best choice of words but in reality that is what he does), bringing in unnecessary bias, sentiments and subjectivity into otherwise clear issues and yet believes he is making sense and those that disagree are missing the point.

4 Play:

If my neighbour has a gun,that does not legitimise my acquiring one .No one can break the law and claim he can do so simply because his neighbour is breaking the law.

If it does not legitimize your having one then what happens to the gun already acquired by your neighbour?

It seems its a case of "let's maintain the status quo as long as I am ok". The world doesn't work that way and its good a lot of countries are waking up to that reality.

Russia’s calling for Israel to declare its nuclear weapons

MOSCOW, March 2 (RIA Novosti) - Russia wants Israel, which has never admitted its nuclear status but is nevertheless believed to possess nuclear weapons, to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to establish a nuclear-free zone in the Middle East, the Russian foreign minister said.

"We believe that the practical implementation of a nuclear-free zone will become possible only when all countries in the region, including Israel, join the NPT and subject their activities to the control of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)," Sergei Lavrov said in an interview with Syrian Arab News Agency, published Friday by the Russian Foreign Ministry.

The issue of nuclear arms has became topical in the Middle East ever since the United States began accusing Iran of pursuing a covert nuclear arms program and demanding that it cease its uranium enrichment activities, while Iran, which is an NPT signatory, has consistently maintained that it needs its nuclear program for its civilian energy needs.

Unlike Iran, Israel, a traditional ally of the United States in the region, has not signed the NPT.

"Russia's principled position - that Israel should join the NPT and all Arab countries should join the Chemical Weapons Convention - remains unchanged," the Russian minister said.

http://en.rian.ru/world/20070302/61469114.html

Very welcome position from the Russians.

It is funny that the West wants a nuclear free middle east when in reality it wants Israel to be the only country with nuclear weapons.

The US just developed a new design for its missiles that are capable of carrying nuclear war heads. It claims the new design is not necessarily adding to its nuclear arsenal but replacing old ones when the proper thing would be for them to destroy their stockpiles.

So, while they invest money redesigning its nuclear capable missiles they are telling Iran not to develop its nuclear technology (not nuclear weapons) while supporting Israel with nuclear weapons (not nuclear technology).

Is it not funny that Russia has far more nuclear weapons(almost double) than the US

4 Play:

Is it not funny that Russia has far more nuclear weapons(almost double) than the US

Atleast they're not trying to stop anyone from getting theirs and neither are they saying they want a nuclear free middle East when their best friend in the nation has one.

Ok,Russia does not try to stop countries getting nukes

Well, they try to stop others from getting it (it's only reasonable) but they're not going about it hypocritically.

Ok,so the issue is not so much that they should not try and stop others,but that they should not do it hypocritically

If Russia is trying to stop others from acquiring nukes,aren't they the biggest hypocrites?Russia's stockpile is larger than all the other nuclear countries,including the US, combined.

When your neighbour how doesnt have a gun yet tells you he is going to kill you (wipe you off the face of the earth) I dont know how many of us ( if you have the power) would be tolerant enough to allow him buy the gun knowing his first point of call. We dont have to condemn Israel for her action when the Iranian president goes about making irresponsible remarks like anhiliating Israel.

4 Play:

Ok,so the issue is not so much that they should not try and stop others,but that they should not do it hypocritically

If Russia is trying to stop others from acquiring nukes,aren't they the biggest hypocrites?Russia's stockpile is larger than all the other nuclear countries,including the US, combined.

First off, I'm against anyone trying to stop others from going nuclear when they themselves have nuclear bombs.

Even more so against those who select those that should have nukes and those that shouldn't.

Iran signed the NPT, no one forced them to do so they did it freely on their own, why now try to renege on an agreement you signed?

If they want to withdraw from the treaty let them do so, they are free to, but to engage in subterfuge and use the benefits of the NPT (which allows access to civilian nuclear technology) to further their aims to destroy the 'zionists' is unacceptable

Pakistan never signed, neither did India and in their own good time, they developed their weapons. neither did Israel.

besides a nation threatening all its neighbours with annihilation should'nt be trusted with nuclear weapons.

Their is an ignorant presumption that underlies some of the argument.People seem to think that while Isreal decided to acquire nukes,their neighbours took a conscious decision not to acquire nukes

Far from that,the neighbours,including Iran embarked on a nuclear program at the same time as Isreal(Iran's nuclear program was started during the reign of the Shah).

The key reason why it has taken so long is the lack of expertise

That is why Iran signed up to the NPT.Under it,you can get nuclear cooperation from more advanced nations so long as your program is for peaceful purposes .In return ,you have to maintain full transparency(including inspection regimes) .

This is where Iran has fallen foul of the law they signed.They have sought to have the best of both worlds.Sign up and get nuclear cooperation and then covertly use the tech acquired to embark on a clandesting program

It is not the good faith of the Arabs and Iranians that has stopped them getting nukes,it is their lack of technology and expertise

Nuclear-Non Proliferation Treaty - they sign so as NOT to develop weapons, its not a presumption, if you signed it you agreed to its terms, which clearly state that you will not try to acquire weapons, pure and simple

The NPT is an entirely voluntary treaty.Countries are free to chose whether or not to sign up

Having exercised that choice,it is only reasonable to call on Iran to observe its treaty obligations.Nobody coerced them into signing up.

The comparisons to Isreal are irrelevant

See how silly you guys are?. . .There's nothing wrong with Israel acquiring Nukes because they didn't sign the NPT. So it's ok to have nukes as long as you do not sign to the NPT?

YES, because you are a sovereign nation with the ability to choose what you want to do,if you sign a treaty and then want to go behind it, that shows you are not honorable and cannot and definitely should not be trusted.

even North Korea for all it has done had the balls to withdraw from the treaty, Iran is just chicken shit and keeps playing games, let them come out and state their true intentions.

So you then agree that there's nothing wrong with North Korea acquiring nukes and if Iran withdraws, they can acquire as much nukes as they want?

@Donzman

Not even China thinks that it is right for N.Korea(a nation where 1 million have died from starvation) to acquire nukes .

Given that Iran is the first nation since the end of the 2nd World War to threaten to wipe out another nation,given Iran's record in the region(its support for terrorists groups ),i don't support their attempts to acquire nukes.

It seems that Iran's former Dep Defence Minister has disappeared[url]http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21344278-2703,00.html[/url]

My question still remains?. . .Is your problem countries adhering to NPT or countries acquiring Nuclear weapons as a whole?

Donzman:

My question still remains?. . .Is your problem countries adhering to NPT or countries acquiring Nuclear weapons as a whole?

Am against countries not adhering to the NPT(as Iran is doing) and against countries acquiring nuclear weapons(as Iran is doing)

So why aren't you bashing Israel then?

@Donzman
Are they acquiring nuclear weapons?

It is widely known that they possess nukes, I need to see you in activist and peace loving mode asking them to disarm and make it public.

Israel operates a principle of Nuclear Ambiguity, not that I blame them, in their brief existence, they have been attacked more times than most countries.

they do not threaten anyone, they just seek to live just like any other people. even if they do have nuclear weapons, it cannot be verified, and since the country is not threatening any other with anihilation or invasion, even in the face of extreme provocation (lebanon and syria), then they can be trusted with whatever weapons they have - their weapons don't end up in the hands of terrorists like hizbollah and the rest of them as occurs with Iran