US Strikes Iran's Nuclear Sites
Trump demonstrates he is deceptive and destructive. The US had said that Iran wasn’t close to developing a weapon. Trump said he was negotiating in good faith and that there was time for diplomacy.
Featured contributor Prof. Josef Mahoney joined CGTN breaking news this morning to discuss US attacks against #iran.
Key talking points:
This development demonstrates once again that Trump is deceptive and destructive. The US said previously that Iran wasn’t close to developing a weapon. Trump told us he was negotiating in good faith and there was time for diplomacy. He told us a couple of days he would wait a couple of weeks to make a decision. And now this. In short, whether military aggression, trade wars, or aggressive domestic policy-making, he's opportunistic, reactionary, untrustworthy and dangerous, a lesson learned a dozen times.
The US has always been involved in this long-running conflict. It destroyed Iranian democracy long ago when Iran nationalized its oil fields. The US installed a corrupt puppet regime and waged proxy wars against Iran when that puppet was overthrown. The US has coordinated with Israel especially to suppress and degrade Iran for decades. It's provided Israel with weapons, helped Israel attack Iran and defended Israel from counter-attacks, and throughout used its UNSC power to protect Israel diplomatically.
In his speech after the attacks, Trump praised Netanyahu, saying they'd worked together better than any team previously. In fact, we know these attacks were coordinated with Tel Aviv, given reports Israeli jets and drones cleared Iranian airspace beforehand to make way for US bombers. We might assume this "teamwork" stretches back to Trump 1.0, when he killed JCPOA and undertook several other aggressions that set the stage for much of what followed.
Trump said these attacks were a spectacular success, destroying Iranian enrichment capacities. In fact, such assessments require more time, so don't be surprised if he decides another run is necessary.
Of course, if these sites posed no real risks, then no follow-ups are required, and all of this is a show. We've heard there's no danger of radiation leaks from these bombed sites now, which raises questions whether there was substantial nuclear material there at all. We've also heard on previous hashtag#cgtn broadcasts from Iranian experts saying these are not the real sites of Iranian efforts.
Trump's speech demonized Iran and used American vernacular to trigger the patriotic impulses of his supporters, many of whom believed he would not do this. He said he did this for peace, that this would be the end of US involvement if Iran capitulates, which we assume means neither Iran nor its supporters, potentially the Houthis and Hezbollah, retaliating further against Israel or the US. There will be considerable pressure for such counter-attacks, so the next 24-48 hours are fraught.
The US said it's not pursuing regime change, but Israel has indicated that it is, or at least, the assassination of the Iranian Supreme Leader. Tehran realises this must be regarded as the same old two-step we’ve long seen, that Israel takes the more aggressive position, the US supports, and sometimes bombs.
