Link to article: https://apnews.com/article/israel-iran-nuclear-talks-us-europe-e98dae9ddad63e9d12c01811a4a34b60
After being drawn out since the Obama administration, new nuclear talks with Iran have begun tumultuously. Parties involved in the talks have voiced their frustration with Iran, claiming that the latter country is being very stubborn with their stance. In 2015, the Obama administration agreed to lift sanctions on Iran provided it diminishes its nuclear weapons development. However, President Trump later withdrew from the deal entirely, which has caused Iran to increase its nuclear development, with U.N. sources reporting Iran has begun stockpiling Uranium with 20% enrichment. China and Russia, who have traditionally taken a more relaxed approach to Iran’s nuclear weapons buildup, have expressed concern with Iran amping up its nuclear development. Additionally, ambassadors from France, Germany, and Britain have released reports calling for change on the matter. However, in the midst of the disagreement, Israel does not want any compromise with Iran whatsoever, as Israel considers it the country’s sworn enemy.
The Iran nuclear deal is an ever-evolving situation that is crucially important to the international community. Firstly, its importance stems from the topic of nuclear weapons. Any country that is allegedly developing the tremendous power of nuclear weapons immediately starts to be taken seriously. For example, North Korea is a weak country, but add its potential nuclear arsenal, and the country could potentially wield enormous influence on a global scale. Powerful countries with nuclear weapons, like Israel, Russia, China, the U.S., France, Germany, and Britain, regardless of their political affiliation, will do almost anything they can to halt another country entering the short list of countries who have nuclear powers. Israel especially doesn’t want one of its fiercest foes to be allowed to gain power. Personally, I believe the whole entire deal needs to be reworked. The original plan upset Israel, and it is paramount to keep them happy for they are the U.S.’ ally in the Middle East. However, it is also paramount for world powers to stop Iran developing powers that could rival the hegemonic power the U.S. has.
Iran is very pertinent to geopolitics, which is being discussed in class. Iran is located in the Middle East, which is where a majority of the world’s oil is produced. Iran is located in the Middle East shatterbelt zone, which means it is prone to conflict and outside dominance. The shatterbelt zone will soon dwindle in terms of importance, but it is always strategic for NATO countries to have an ally in a different part of the world. Additionally, Israel is a Tier 1 country in the region it is in, making the situation even more difficult.