A Strike on Iran would signify the Beginning of an Epoch of Nuclear War
by Dmitriy Sedov
Global Research, February, 2007 - Strategic Cultural Foundation (Russia)
In my paper entitled “2007: Opening a New Page in the World’s History”, published in September, 2006, I examined the
possibility that a US strike on Iran using small-scale nuclear munitions [mini-nukes] would be launched, and that the
strike would become the beginning of an epoch of nuclear wars. There were various responses to the paper. Some authors,
including recognized experts, doubted the possibility of such a development. At present, few people doubt that there
will be a strike on Iran. Rather, the question is whether nuclear or conventional weapons will be used in the offensive.
In this context, I would like to present the following considerations.
1. An attack on Iran is motivated by nothing but the US domestic political expediency and the unlimited appetites of the
country’s military-industrial complex. President G. Bush has no choice – his only option is a breakthrough. The problem
does not originate from the total failure of his doctrine of the “war on international terrorism”. If the US political
elite represented by Bush based its decisions solely on the estimates of the damage to its public image that might be
caused by the fiasco of the global anti-terrorist campaign, it would have extremely serious reservations about starting
a new regional war. However, they are motivated by something else – they need to continue Bush’s politics backed by a
conglomerate of weapons suppliers, who established control over the country’s oversized military spending. Should Bush
recognize being defeated and withdraw the US military forces from the Middle East, the Democrat’s elite would overtake
the financial leverage, and a major redistribution of the military commissioning would follow. When such enormous funds
are at stake, people’s lives and those of entire nations become tokens in the game. For these operations, the destiny of
the Middle East and its nations means absolutely nothing, just as the lives of the Vietnamese and the Cambodians
showered with napalm and defoliants meant nothing either. One must be naïve to suppose that the Pentagon machine will
stop and miss the new incredibly high profits.
2. The coming war between the US and Iran has to conform to certain parameters defined a priori. The US is tired of
Iraq, and the public opinion in the country is turning increasingly anti-war. Therefore, the offensive against Iran has
to be swift and victorious. This will save Bush’s political group and give it a higher rating in the country. There can
be no doubt that a successful aggression will make Bush extremely popular in the US – in this anti-Christian society the
pagan god of victory has long taken the place of the Savior. A triumph will make the US public blind and deaf – it will
remain unaware of the price of the US victory for the nations of the Middle East. The crucial circumstance is that only
nuclear weapons can guarantee the US victory in this war. Knowing that the US failed to win even in Iraq, a country
plagued by religious and ethnic strife, one cannot expect it to prevail in the united and spiritually strong Iran. Only
the use of nuclear weapons can make it possible to cause severe damage to the Iranian control system hidden in bunkers
and, importantly, to behead its leadership no matter how deep underground it might be hiding. Iran without its leaders
and with a paralyzed system of control, with an army devastated by “baby nukes”, is the only option which suits the US -
it agrees to talk about peace only to a totally subdued offender. Such talks would let the US leaders’ old dream of a
Middle Eastern Disneyland, mastered by the US and Israel, come true.
Here are the facts which illustrate the process of preparation for the devastation of Iran:
- The UN Security Council Resolution envisions that a further tightening of the sanctions imposed on Iran must take
place after February 21, 2006. From the standpoint of international law, this is a pretext (essentially, a poor one, but
one that does exist) to legalize an aggression against the country.
- Two US aircraft carrier groups armed with nukes are moving into the region. The US aircraft carrier groups have been
on missions 5 times over the past 15 years. In 4 cases out of the 5, they launched military offensives. In March, 2007
both groups are to take their combat positions.
- Additional ground forces have been shifted to the border between Iraq and Iran. Preparations for a new phase of
hostilities are underway.
- In February, Patriot missile defense systems will be ready to defend Israel and the aircraft carrier groups from enemy
airstrikes.
- British combat engineers are entering the regions of the future fighting, clearly in order to operate in the Strait of
Ormuz, where Iranians are most likely to lay mines.
- The US and Israel launched a powerful information and propaganda campaign preparing the global public opinion for the
aggression.
- CENTCOM’s Commander John Abizaid, an opponent of the war with Iran, resigned. His position was taken over by Admiral
W. Fallon, a veteran of the 1991 Iraq and 1995 Bosnia campaigns.
- John Negroponte has been removed from his position as the Director of National Intelligence for persistently resisting
the use of force against Iran.
- Tony. Blair, the “staff peacemaker” for the Middle East, never mentions a peaceful settlement of the Iran dossier. He
makes no attempts to find a way to resolve the crisis in a peaceful way, and this is highly indicative.
All of the above constitute evidence of Iran being prepared for sacrifice. Will a major provocation be orchestrated for
this purpose?
A number of observers opine that Washington needs one. We believe that what we will see is going to be a plain
cowboy-style scenario like the one which materialized in Iraq. The media has never stop debating the issue of the
“Iranian atomic bomb” – just as they focused on “Saddam. Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction”. It is time for them to
start. It absolutely does not matter that eventually nothing of the kind will be found in Iran. Those who disagree will
be silenced by force.
The question is – will such a “breakthrough” do George Bush any good? The idea of attacking Iran was born in the
primitive minds of those who, just for the sake of their profits, can sell the rope on which they will be hanged. This
time it will be neither they nor their children who will perish in the nuclear Holocaust, and they’d rather not worry
that by this they will take the whole of mankind a step closer to total catastrophe.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect
those of the Centre for Research on Globalization.
ENDS