Mark Lavie’s argument (“Why The Iran Deal Could Be Good For Israel,” Opinion, July 24) that we should accept the Iran nuclear agreement and “move on” comes down to two points. First, Mr. Lavie tells us, it doesn’t matter that the agreement frees Iran to deploy a nuclear arsenal in 10 or 15 years because (a) they’ve promised not to do it and (b) within that “eternity” of time, the benefits of trade with the West may fundamentally change the nature of the Iranian regime.
Second, even if Iran develops a nuclear weapon, Mr. Lavie thinks that would not be such a big deal. The mullahs would be afraid even to test it, he says, because that would promptly lead to “the whole world crashing down on Iran” (in much the same manner, one assumes, as effective international sanctions “crashed down” on Iran roughly a decade after initial discovery of its clandestine nuclear program in 2002). And anyway, Israel has the Arrow anti-missile system, so why worry?
Were the subject not so serious, Mr. Lavie’s recitation of portions of the agreement in which Iran renounces for now and all time the development of nuclear weapons would be laughable. Throughout history, totalitarian regimes have made solemn promises of this kind and subsequently ignored them. With specific reference to Iran, readers may wish to consult the timeline provided by The New York Times for a listing of Iran’s violations of its previous commitments regarding its nuclear program.
Mr. Lavie’s fanciful hope that ending Iran’s economic isolation will moderate the character of its revolutionary regime is nothing but Pollyannaish speculation. Nor do the desires of the Iranian people have any relevance in this regard since, as the mullahs amply demonstrated in 2009, a totalitarian government prepared to commit any atrocity to preserve its power will always be able to crush dissent.
The catastrophic agreement that the Obama administration has made with Iran must be disapproved and Obama’s promised veto overridden. Readers should contact their elected representatives to make that point.
