On or off Iran ping list.
Posted on 09/25/2007 11:37:10 AM PDT by ConservativeMan55
UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Allowing Iran to acquire nuclear weapons could destabilize the world and lead to war, French President Nicolas Sarkozy told the United Nations on Tuesday.
(Advertisement) In his maiden speech to the U.N. General Assembly, Sarkozy said: "There will be no peace in the world if the international community falters in the face of nuclear arms proliferation."
Iran was entitled to nuclear power for civilian purposes, he said, "but if we allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons, we would incur an unacceptable risk to stability in the region and in the world".
In a broader warning against the dangers of appeasement, the new French leader said: "Weakness and renunciation do not lead to peace. They lead to war."
Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, but the West suspects the Islamic Republic of enriching uranium to develop a nuclear weapons capability.
Underlining French support for tougher sanctions against Tehran, sought by the United States but opposed by Russia and China, Sarkozy said: "We can only resolve this crisis by combining firmness with dialogue."
In an interview with the New York Times published on Monday, Sarkozy said that if the U.N. Security Council was unable to agree on further financial sanctions, the European Union should take its own measures to raise pressure on Iran.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner caused an outcry last week by saying if diplomacy failed to stop Iran's nuclear program, the world should prepare for the worst -- war.
But Sarkozy appeared to deliver the same message in a coded form, without mentioning the possibility of military action to prevent Iran achieving a nuclear capability.
Very good analysis by the French leader
How many troops do you have Sark?
Herr Iranian Hitler says that nuclear weapons are not useful, because they didn’t prevent the fall of the Sovient Union. get over it! /sarc
bttt
La France est revenue a la civilisation et la raison.
So France is now the leading world voice against Iran, while the Bush administration allows his President to go galivanting around the U.S.’s largest city like a tourist. Great.
Once they get the bomb... Iran becomes the Medhi of worldwide Islam.
With a reported personnel strength of 779,450 in 2006 (259,050 regular force[1], 419,000 regular reserve[2],
I know. You have to wonder if the Iranian president would be welcomed in France?
It’s all because the U.N. is here. We can’t stop him from attending the U.N. assemblies, doesn’t matter who is president of the U.S.
Stinks but there it is.
They could have prevented him visiting Columbia. They didn’t.
No. Israel is.
So is Sarkozy is offering French troops to fight Iran to prevent their acquiring nukes?
Yeah right. More empty Euro-talk with no action to back it up, more likely.
“French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner caused an outcry last week by saying if diplomacy failed to stop Iran’s nuclear program, the world should prepare for the worst — war.”
Pray tell who is going to fight that war? Not France or any other European nation. I guess it’s up to the imperious USA to do the fighting, the dying and the paying of the bills.
I think I'm going to go lay down...I feel a bad case of cognitive dissonance coming on.
Yeah right. More empty Euro-talk with no action to back it up, more likely.
You underestimate the significance of Sarkozy's power. France is one of the few countries in the world that has force projection abilities. If France wanted to they could take down Iran by themselves. But more importantly, France forms the core of Old Europe. With Merkel at the helm in Germany and the UK still supporting the US, the great powers of Old Europe are no longer antagonists, but allies. Add in New Europe and our allies in other parts of the world (like Canada and Japan) and there is a significant political force that can be used against Iran if needed. The only major antagonists left are Russia and China. But even they would step out of the way for a united Europe and United States action. There really aren't any major players in Europe who can sidetrack our diplomatic actions anymore. This is *extremely* significant.
A Heck of lot more that you I imagine.
Actually you can find this out online without out having to ask the President of France.
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/fr.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Military_of_France
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