by Mike Whitney, The Unz Review:
The Trump administration is demanding that Iran give up its strategic missile program as part of any nuclear deal. But Iran’s ballistic missiles do not violate international law nor is there any global treaty under which they are banned. Article 51 of the UN Charter clearly states that countries have the sovereign right to develop conventional weapons for self-defense which means that Iran’s missile program is perfectly legal. Iran has every right to build as many missiles as it wants, and it is not required to get Washington’s approval to do so. More importantly, Iran needs these missiles to defend itself against any potential attack by the United States and Israel. This is not simply a matter of Iran’s sovereign right to self-defense, but an issue of regional security that has been greatly undermined by persistent US-Israel hostilities across the Middle East. A strong, well-armed Iran serves as a deterrent to US-Israel intervention which increases the prospects for peace in the region.
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Trump has also ordered Iran to end its relations with regional allies Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis. If we link this demand with Trump’s order that Iran abandon its ballistic missile program, we can better understand his overall strategic goal which is to weaken and isolate Iran to the point where it is unable to defend itself against American aggression. That is the clear objective of this latest political kabuki; to goad Iran into laying the groundwork for its own destruction.
When we mull-over these new demands, we cannot help but wonder, “Does any of this have anything to do with Iran’s nuclear enrichment program or is it all just a ruse aimed at concealing Trump’s real motive, the disarming of Iran? Indeed, if we consider the facts as I have presented them here, it does not appear that Trump seeks negotiations at all, but is simply putting a gun to Iran’s head and saying, “Drop the weapon and no one gets hurt.” Isn’t that a more accurate description of what’s going on? Check out this excerpt from an article at Iran International:
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on Saturday ruled out the possibility of negotiation with the United States, in his first public speech after President Donald Trump said he sent a letter to him.
“The insistence of some bullying governments on negotiations is not aimed at resolving issues but rather at asserting dominance and imposing their demands,” Khamenei said in a meeting with Iranian officials in Tehran. “The Islamic Republic of Iran will certainly not accept their demands,” he added….
Responding to Khamenei’s rejection of Trump’s call to negotiate a nuclear agreement, the White House on Saturday reiterated the US president’s assertion that Tehran can be dealt with either militarily or by making a deal.
“We hope the Iran regime puts its people and best interests ahead of terror,” White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said in a statement.
Lebanese pro-Iranian TV channel Al Mayadeen reported Saturday Tehran had refused to enter nuclear negotiations with the United States under the conditions set by the current US administration.
No talks on missile capabilities, regional influence
Khamenei said the West’s issue is not just Tehran’s nuclear program. “Rather, for them, negotiations are a means to raise new demands, including restrictions on defense capabilities and international influence.”…
While Tehran maintains that its ballistic missile program is purely defensive, the West considers it a destabilizing factor in a volatile, conflict-ridden Middle East. Khamenei rejects negotiation with US in first speech after Trump’s letter, Iran International
As you can see, Iranian media confirms what we said earlier, that Trump’s demands are not aimed at denuclearization, but disarmament and isolation. We will provide more evidence for this later on.
The western media has done an excellent job of obfuscating the facts on this matter and have patched together a makeshift narrative that blames Iran for a crisis which is entirely Trump’s fault. Fortunately, (as the article states) Iran is refusing to be bullied by Trump, which is not just admirable, but smart, too. Some readers might recall what happened to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi who was toppled by US-backed forces more than a decade ago. Gaddafi was tricked into giving up his WMD programs—including his nuclear, chemical, and ballistic missile capabilities—after which he was overthrown and savagely killed by NATO-led forces in 2011. His willingness to disarm led to his untimely death and the subsequent annihilation of his country. Iran must not follow that same course of action. It must enlarge its arsenal and prepare for war.
