CNN.com - Officials rebuke Iran for nuclear policy - Jun 26, 2004

CNN.com - Officials rebuke Iran for nuclear policy - Jun 26, 2004

From the US perspective, Iran cannot be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons. The reason is because the U.S. government assumes that were Iran to obtain WMD, those weapons would be provided to terrorists who would use them against the United States. That is an intolerable threat and one we believe to be real. The terrorists who accomplished 911 would not hesitate to use a nuclear weapon if they could obtain one. Terrorists did 911, and terrorists behead kidnapped civilians and film it. We don't need any more convincing about their intentions.

I'm not sure that the rest of the world has understood how profoundly 911 changed the American outlook. It is very unlikely that Bush could have taken the US to war against Iraq if 911 had not happened. I'm not sure that European or ME countries really get this point. We believe (because its demonstrably true) that terrorist networks out there are plotting to accomplish horrific attacks of mass destruction on American soil. 911 showed us how far they are willing to go, and what they are prepared to do, which is basically anything.

Iran is a state sponsor of terrorism. Letting them obtain nuclear weapons technology would be extremely dangerous to us.