I missed the callout.
Guess we should just go on you plan.
"Hope"
PS Sanctions have been working.
Theres a reason a slightly more moderate guy was elected. And why Iran even approached the table. That reason is sanctions.
More harsher sanctions would have made Iran give up more, then oh... the nothing they did for this 'breakthrough'.
The Iranians' nuclear program is a point of national pride, extremely popular across all societal groups. Obviously, they've made some sacrifices. They're willing to do so in the face of sanctions & threats. They have grit, and they earned some respect.
As far as it goes, their production facilities have met IAEA standards, in general, as well. That also deserves some respect as to their intentions.
As the effects of the Bush years are wearing off, they've responded with changes of their own.
Like it or not, that's the way it is. They intend to move ahead with a lot more reactors. And they'll take the IAEA along, too, playing by the rules.
If we want stronger rules, we need to grant them legitimacy, like detente or Nixon's opening to China. There's only one way to get there, and that's it. period. As far as mainstream America goes, we're sick of war. There is no popular support for a war with Iran & the Obama Admin knows it.
They won't blink, but somebody has to, which means us, with the urging of our fellow 5+1 group. Everybody wants a deal.
I do hope that the Obama Admin has the sense to handle this with some skill. America will accept any truth that gives us reasonable & verifiable reassurance of Iran's compliance with a deal. Forget the rest. The truth would serve well. They're all in on their nuclear program, so we better make the best of it, because we won't be starting any shooting, nor likely will the Israelis, despite the bluster. The Iranians are too smart to give us any excuses that we don't already have, and those weren't even good enough for the Neocons.
The US only has one card to play, recognizing the Iranian program as legitimate, so we better play it for all it's worth. All other plays are foolish denial of reality.