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Brzezinski, Scowcroft say Iran threatens regional arms race

March 6, 2009

WASHINGTON (JTA) -- Two former national security advisers said the biggest danger of an Iranian nuclear weapon is the nuclear arms race it would spur in the region.

Brent Scowcroft, national security adviser for the Gerald Ford and George H.W. Bush administrations, and Zbigniew Brzezinski, who held the same position in the Jimmy Carter administration, made their statements in testimony to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday, according to media reports. The two also backed negotiations with Iran over the use of military force.

"If Iran is allowed to go forward, in self-defense or for a vareity of reasons we could have half a dozen countries in the region and 20 or 30 more around the world, doing the same thing, just in case," Scowcroft said.

Brzezinski rejected a report that said Israel wanted the United States to put a timeframe on Iranian talks. "We should be very careful not to become susceptible to interested parties," he warned.

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