Posted on 09/27/2009 1:08:22 PM PDT by Steelfish
Defense Secretary Robert Gates Says Severe Sanctions On Iran Could Work
Gates says additional sanctions may force an economically squeezed Iran to change its nuclear policy. He questions the value of military strikes.
By Paul Richter September 27, 2009
Reporting from Washington - Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said today the severe sanctions the West is threatening against Iran could force a change in the Islamic Republic's nuclear ambitions, especially since the country is already under severe economic distress.
Speaking as officials from six world powers prepare to meet with Iranian negotiators this week to discuss Tehran's nuclear program, Gates noted that the unemployment rate is 40% among Iran's young people, and asserted that past economic sanctions "are having an impact."
Severe additional sanctions "would have the potential to bringing them to change their policies," Gates said on ABC's "This Week."
In contrast, Gates played down, as he has in the past, the value of military strikes, saying at most they could only retard Iran's nuclear program by an estimated one to three years.
"The reality is, there is no military option that does anything other than buy time," he said in an interview on CNN's "State of the Union" program
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
Can we please stop pussy-footing around, and hit the underground nuclear installations with Tactical Nukes?
That’s the only way to blast those bunkers. Bunker-busters won’t penetrate a MOUNTAIN.
Hot, bright, radioactive sanctions might work quite well!
Why, just LOOK at what twelve years of sanctions forced Iraq to do--nothing.
Gates is an ass. Cutting the F-22 and the missile defense program.
Do we not know that China, Venezuela or Russia will help Iran with its gasoline requirements.
Does Hussein think we are stupid.
Why, of course he does--we bought his line of crap.
One has to wonder if Israel is developing something undercover expressly for that type of situation. I believe they are so deep they are supposedly nukeproof.
The only sanction which will work against Iran is one nuke detonated in each of their nuclear facilities. I suspect it will be the Israelis who sanction Iran.
Because sanctions have worked so well in the past with nutjobs....
I believe that the government of Iran would accept the starvation of all of its people before it would shelve its goal of blowing Israel off the map.
Our government is filled with corrupt morons, and the bill is about to come due.
A new movie? The Achmedinejah Sanction?
We should have known that severe sanctions would work ...LONG AGO!
Even George Stephanopolis laughed that one off.
With all due respect to Gates, sanctions don’t have a particularly good track record in changing the behavior of hostile states.
What usually seems to happen is A) the average citizen in the targeted country suffers mightily while the powers that be scarcely get their hair mussed by the sanctions; B) One or more nations ignore the sanctions and/or the sanction process is riddled with corruption (which allows A to happen). Cuba, Iraq, North Korea, the list goes on and on.
So why pray tell, would sanctions be a stumbling stone to stopping the mullahs desires for a fierily end?
China, Venezuela, and others will not abide by the sanctions. Iran has oil, which will find a market.
The entrances could be temporarily sealed with conventional bombs. Then an enhanced radiation device (Neutron bomb) could poison the area around these sites.
This will force Iran's hand and they will move forward with sinking oil freighters in the straight of Hormuz.
Iran will not stop until they have a nuke and when they have that nuke, it will be more than one.
You can count on it.
To get the Russians and Chinese, especially the Chinese, to agree to very tough sanctions against the Iranians will extremely difficult. The Russians have opened the door to talking about additional sanctions, but with no promises whatsoever. They are making a fortune selling high technology and advanced weapons systems to Tehran, and they are not going to give up that cash cow until they absolutely have to. The Chinese have already said that if there is a worldwide ban on gasoline exports to Iran that they would supply Tehran themselves. Hardly words of encouragemtn for Bambi.
I'm so disappointed in Gates wimp-out on this as well as abandonment of the generals regarding Afghanistan
This is kinda like:
Q: How many men does it take to put a toilet seat down?
A: No one knows, it's never been done.
Only in this case:
Q: How well will severe sanctions work against Iran?
A: No one knows, they never been able to get Russia and China and other countries with a vested interest in Iran's well-being to go along with them.
Of course sanctions would work, but they would have to be universally applied. None of the BS like with the oil sanctions on Iraq that became another huge black eye for the UN when records uncovered after the US invasion showed how many nations and companies were ignoring them.
There is no such thing as solidarity when it comes to nations dealing with other nations. Each one acts in its own best interest, period. That goes double for socialist and communist governments.
Assuming entrances can be found. Might be some distance under the sand, fitted with equipment intended to drill or sleeve a fresh passage to the top of the sand.
But if the entrances are known, then plain old wet cement would do the trick.
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