The US government has not ruled out military action to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Al-Arabiya in an interview during his trip to the Middle East yesterday that all options are on the table.
When asked if that included a military option, Blinken didn’t rule it out. “All options are on the table,” he repeated. However, he also said that the preferred path is through diplomacy. Iran had the chance to return to the international nuclear deal but turned it down, Blinken said. As early as the summer of 2022, US President Joe Biden had not ruled out an attack “as a last resort”.
Iran’s leadership is also under pressure domestically
Negotiations to revive the 2015 Vienna nuclear deal between Iran and the West have been stuck in an impasse for many months. According to diplomats, Tehran blocked an agreement shortly before it was concluded. The brutal repression of the recent protests in Iran had also shaken confidence in the negotiations. The EU condemned the actions of the Iranian security apparatus and imposed new, severe sanctions.
After the United States withdrew from the nuclear deal with Iran in 2018, Tehran no longer adhered to the restrictions agreed in the deal and denied IAEA inspectors access. Iran is currently enriching uranium to a purity of 60 percent. According to the IAEA, this is not significantly below the 90 percent required for nuclear weapons. Iran claims to use its nuclear program for civilian purposes only.
Just a few days ago, the United States completed a large-scale military exercise with Israel. According to media reports, it was the largest military exercise that Israel and the United States have ever held together. The background is growing concerns about Iran’s nuclear program. According to the Israeli military, the exercise was intended to counter a “variety of regional threats”. Since the Islamic Revolution in Iran in 1979, Israel has been considered the country’s archenemy – and vice versa.
