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U.S. bombs Iranian nuclear sites

bbc.co.uk

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Re: U.S. bombs Iranian nuclear sites

#491

Iran never had the deterrent North Korea had. And by being a theocracy they heavily skewed any threat calculus against themselves. What they were doing, inching towards nukes, was a horrible move. In their position, you either sprint covertly and not play at all. I suspect that after their nuclear program was discovered and set back they fell victim to the sunk cost fallacy and convinced themselves they could repurpo…

> by having a theocracy they

Religion is just another ideology, and it s not like Islam has a specific position about nuclear energy

Re: U.S. bombs Iranian nuclear sites

#492
post #71

Some in the U.S. want peace. I guess no one else gives a shit and is just going to jettison us into a war for millennia.

A nuclear armed Iran is a horrible idea. America an many other countries have been countering that for decades.

A nuclear armed Iran - and remember that in vast swathes of the middle east, Iran is considered a very dangerous enemy - would lead to the rest of the middle east rapidly pursuing their own nuclear weapons.

Re: U.S. bombs Iranian nuclear sites

#493
post #476

Iran never had the deterrent North Korea had. And by being a theocracy they heavily skewed any threat calculus against themselves. What they were doing, inching towards nukes, was a horrible move. In their position, you either sprint covertly and not play at all. I suspect that after their nuclear program was discovered and set back they fell victim to the sunk cost fallacy and convinced themselves they could repurpo…

If anything, the lack of competence is on the other side. Was enriched uranium destroyed? I doubt it. Have they even "obliterated" Fordow site buried 90 m deep inside the mountain? I have serious doubts. Iran's nuclear program was set back some months if anything.

The US, Israel and possibly Britain will install a no-fly zone over Iran. Israel is going to be entirely unwilling to allow Iran to go right back to building again what just got destroyed. This was a once in decades shot for Israel to take against Iran, in its very weakened state (with its proxies out of commission, Syria knocked over, and Russia very preoccupied). They'll attempt the post Gulf War I approach against Iraq (as an invasion will never be on the table). Sanctions and no-fly zone. They'll retain control over Iran's sky and in doing so will be free to bomb as they see fit if Iran attempts to build or re-start something like Fordow. If they attempt to install new air defenses, they'll simply bomb them. Whether that one bombing took care of Fordow is going to be moot, they'll hit it ten more times if that's what it takes, and destroy anything that attempts to move in or out of there. Israel can't maintain a no-fly zone over Iran so the US will be enlisted to do the heavy lifting on that.

Re: U.S. bombs Iranian nuclear sites

#496

This is definitely a bold movement, I pray for peace, And hoping US stops jumping in conflicts that are not theirs

This is a conflict America and its allies have been fighting for decades: to ensure Iran does not get nuclear weapons.

Much of the middle east considers Iran to be a very significant enemy. A nuclear armed Iran would lead to much of the rest of the middle east rapidly pursuing their own nuclear weapons programs.

Re: U.S. bombs Iranian nuclear sites

#497
I can't help but conclude the primary rogue state in region is not Iran - it's Israel:

- Did not sign the non-proliferation treaty

- Does not allow IAEA inspectors into their country

- Nuclear weapons program widely believed to have started from material stolen from the US

- Prime Minister wanted by the ICC for war crimes.

Since 2023, they have:

- Invaded and occupied parts of Syria and Lebanon

- Bombed Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen

- Killed nearly 70,000 people in Gaza

The Islamic Republic of Iran appears sane, rational, and peaceful by comparison. Quite an achievement!

Re: U.S. bombs Iranian nuclear sites

#498

I imagine every reasonably-sized country looking at this and thinking: "well, we'd be idiots not to have nuclear weapons by any means necessary." This will be one of the single-most proliferation-inducing events in history, maybe save Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

I don't follow your logic.

You're saying that there exists some country capable of a nuclear weapons program (an exceedingly difficult thing), that for some reason has not actually built one, and now that they see Iran pummeled for trying to build theirs... is now incentivized to finally go for it??

Re: U.S. bombs Iranian nuclear sites

#499

Bombing another country is literally a declaration of war. With explosions. Isn't an act of congress required for this, in the US?

No. The president is the commander in chief. I can't remember the president or the situation but a long time ago a president attacked and said "I'm sending the troops" then senate/congress had to approve it or troops would be stranded.
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