U.S. Softens Position on Iran Over Nukes

[NNN0LHI]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=540&ncid=716&e=7&u=/ap/20031122/ap_on_re_mi_ea/nuclear_agency_iran

VIENNA, Austria - American officials hinted they were backing away from demands that the U.N. Security Council get involved in a dispute over Iran's nuclear program, even as a U.S. envoy voiced unprecedented criticism of the U.N. atomic agency because of the issue.

The United States has failed to convince most board members of the International Atomic Energy Agency that the Security Council needs to step in, diplomats said Friday.

That task was made more difficult this week after IAEA Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei issued a report saying the agency had found "no evidence" of an Iranian nuclear weapons program.

U.S. envoy Kenneth Brill called the conclusion "questionable." ElBaradei called the statement "disingenuous" — and noted U.S. weapons hunters have come up empty-handed in Iraq, another country where it alleged a nuclear program.

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[radfringe]

1. not according to this article they haven't

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=234898

[lumpy]

2. Do you suppose that the US warmongers

have figured out that we just can't afford another invasion, at this time at least?

[LeftistGorilla]

4. looks like that to me...

you talk too much shit you're bound to :puke:

[54anickel]

3. Just set Iran aside for now since there's a better opportunity in Turkey!

[PurityOfEssence]

5. Divide and conquer?

I know this is pretty farfetched, but just suppose that we're suddenly of the opinion that the Shiites can't be stopped in Iraq. Perhaps the thinking then would be that if we cozy up to the rest of them (Iran) we can "split" Islam by forcing some kind of de facto government into place in Iraq and stir up some factionalism in the region, thus taking heat off of ourselves.

Crazy, you say?

Islam cleaves tidily into two large groups as it is, allowing this to work for us could stabilize things and turn the violence inward in a charming low-grade tribal sect-war.