Nigel Sheinwald, British Ambassador to the US, paints an excellent picture:
The international community has given Iran a choice between engagement and isolation. It knows from experience that it is hard to stop a determined proliferator. Iran is no exception. But the world is not without leverage.
First, unlike Saddam’s Iraq, Iran desires international respectability and goes to extraordinary lengths to portray its nuclear program as legitimate.
[See Jon's post below for a great example, ]
International censure by bodies such as the United Nations Security Council is a powerful pressure point. Since 2005, Britain, France and Germany have worked with the United States, Russia and China — the “E3 plus 3” process — to maintain a strong international consensus.
Second, the international community has many things that Iran needs — above all, technology and money — if it is to meet the demands of its growing population, nearly 70 percent of which is younger than 30 and which has a strong desire to reintegrate with the world.
Third, unlike North Korea, Iran has a pluralistic system of government and a surprisingly open society.
It is no democracy — as it showed last summer. But there are many power centers. The regime must be mindful of public opinion. This gives the international community an opportunity to influence debate inside Iran.
The international community has given Iran a choice between engagement and isolation. It knows from experience that it is hard to stop a determined proliferator. Iran is no exception. But the world is not without leverage.
First, unlike Saddam’s Iraq, Iran desires international respectability and goes to extraordinary lengths to portray its nuclear program as legitimate.
[See Jon's post below for a great example, ]
International censure by bodies such as the United Nations Security Council is a powerful pressure point. Since 2005, Britain, France and Germany have worked with the United States, Russia and China — the “E3 plus 3” process — to maintain a strong international consensus.
Second, the international community has many things that Iran needs — above all, technology and money — if it is to meet the demands of its growing population, nearly 70 percent of which is younger than 30 and which has a strong desire to reintegrate with the world.
Third, unlike North Korea, Iran has a pluralistic system of government and a surprisingly open society.
It is no democracy — as it showed last summer. But there are many power centers. The regime must be mindful of public opinion. This gives the international community an opportunity to influence debate inside Iran.
