Look, I know their evil nature and their rhetoric and their writings as well as you do. Now, go read Stalin in the 1930s and 1940s and Krushev after him and Breshnev after him; evil minds think and speak alike. How many nukes did they set off?
But, from their point of view having the nukes meant we would not attack them, directly. Did it end their evil nature, improve their lousy sytem, endear their people to them, save their evil system from failure? No.
They caused us a hell of alot of trouble, but we handled it.
I sincerely hope you're right, but my gut and experience tells me you're not...
We're dealing with religious whackos who long for death here, not Policy-wonk bureaucrats looking to move up in the party to get a dascha....
And the button is being held by the Revolutionary Guards, who are just as nutty....