how can the agreement not be an issue?

Submitted by David Bloch (United States), Apr 8, 2015 at 20:02

I agree that economic sanctions are likely not much of a hindrance to Iran's nuclear weapons program, and that the lifting of them does not substantively alter the parameters determining the speed with which Iran can proceed to that goal. But how can one dismiss the effect of an agreement between Iran and the United States, on Israel's strategic options?

Surely it is very difficult to imagine an Israeli government attacking Iran after such an "understanding" has been reached-- not least because Israel refrained from taking action when no such "understanding" was in effect. Sure, the minutaie of the agreement are not so important-- but I cannot see how the fact that there is an agreement is not enormously important as a factor in substantially increasing Israel's isolation, should it take action. At the very least, much more courage is required to undertake such action now than before.

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".