ABSTRACT
Iran’s uranium enrichment: a unifying concern for the West The problems and challenges presented by the Islamic Republic of Iran vary according to the geographical and political vantage point of the observer. To most Americans, as well as to the leaders of most of the Sunni Arab states that neighbour Iran, not to mention to Israel, the Islamic Republic presents a revolutionary, hegemonic, offensive threat. Many of Iran’s policies and actions give grounds for offence: its military and financial support for Hizbullah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad; its abetting of civil strife in Iraq; its refusal to recognise Israel’s right to exist and rejection of the Middle East peace process; its missile-development programme and its poor human-rights record have all made Iran something of a pariah. The 1979 occupation of the US embassy in Tehran and the Iranian state’s connection with the bombings of US and French barracks in Beirut in 19831 also instilled deep resentment, among Americans in particular. Most Europeans, while viewing Iran’s record in these areas as deplorable, see the country in less antagonistic terms.
