Posted on 09/13/2005 2:40:42 PM PDT by F14 Pilot
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush on Tuesday said Iran had a right to a civilian nuclear program if it did not gain expertise or materials to build an atomic weapon.
The United States is concerned that Iran's nuclear program is aimed at producing weapons, and Bush said he would be "speaking candidly about Iran" with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who are gathering in New York for the United Nations General Assembly.
"It is very important for the world to understand that Iran with a nuclear weapon will be incredibly destabilizing," Bush said at a news conference with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. "And therefore we must work together to prevent them from having the wherewithal to develop a nuclear weapon."
Iran says it has every right to develop nuclear technology to generate electricity, while the United States and the European Union want the U.N. Security Council to take up Iran's case after it resumed uranium processing last month.
The United States last month explicitly accepted for the first time that Iran could develop civilian nuclear programs, backing an EU proposal to allow Tehran to pursue atomic power in exchange for giving up fuel work.
Strategically we'd probably rather cozy up to the Persians than the Baathist Arabs over there. They are more cunning, less bloodthirsty, less savage, or so it seems. My gut tells me the US would like to normalize relations with Iran.
"people on this forum go off halfcocked about every single thing that Bush says, even when what he is stating is the OBVIOUS."
EXACTLY
First its a Religion of Peace
now THIS!
HHMMMM. Iran can build nuclear power plants, but we can't.
No To EVIL
Furthermore we just don't know all the facts. What's his name says evidence, shaky as it is, supports the assertion the future leadership (OBLs sons and others) ran to Iran during the Afghanistan war and the operational people went to Pakistan. Iran could very well be incarcerating a lot of big fish indefinitely. We probably know this via back channel.
I hope you're right, but I haven't seen any sign of this so far. Time to watch and listen very carefully.
Realistically, short of nuclear war there is very little the US can do to prevent Iran from doing what it wants. I'm not sure the majority of Americans want to see nuclear strikes in Iran.
The other point here, is the nose-rubbing the Eruos got on this issue. Iran was their assignment. They plied their best diplomacy, their best cajoleing, their best and most fearsome threats (puke). The got Diddle E. Squat. The got laughed out of Tehran. They couldn't get one significant concession.
A lot a good that is! Iran has plenty oil and gas - it doesn't need a nuclear program of any kind!
Is bush gone crazy or what?
yOUR RIGHT. I didn't see anything that quotes our President saying Iran had the right ....
Yup
mullahs can not be trusted at all!
I say, if Iran wants a nuke, let's give it to them!
I think the reading comprehension skills on FR have declined significantly.
He's not saying anything new.
"mullahs can not be trusted at all!"
Everyone knows that. Including Pres. Bush.
i doubt he knows that!
The only qoute I see is one referencing where Bush speaks cadidly that Iran should not have the wherewithall to make nuclear weapons.
I dont know where Rueters is getting the support for the first sentence of this piece...probably from fairy tell land.
i dont know why we should defend evil?
Where's the Bush quote? I don't see it in the Reuters article.
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