Breakthrough with Iran!

After a decade of bitterness between Iran and the West over the country’s nuclear weapons program, real progress has finally been made. In Geneva today an agreement was announced between Iran and six of the world’s most powerful nations (USA, UK, France, China, Germany and Russia). Iran agreed to neutralise all of its stocks of 20% enriched uranium, the kind that could make a weak nuclear weapon. Iran has also agreed to stop enriching uranium beyond 5%. The rest of the world has agreed to ease sanctions on Iran and will allow it to enrich uranium up to 5%.

The breakthrough is historic and actually achieves something. The economy of Iran should improve, which will reflect well on the moderate President, Hassan Rouhani. It would also help the poor in Iran who have been hit hard by the sanctions but have nothing to do with the nuclear program. Keeping Rouhani popular is important to the West as he is prepared to negotiate. After all we do not want a radical like Ahmadinejad to gain power and threaten our security.

Despite this deal only lasting six months, Israel is already condemning it. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called it a mistake that the world will regret. I totally reject that statement as it stops Iran from enriching uranium to the point at which they could make any sort of functional nuclear weapon! Also, if it were up to Netanyahu, there would be no negotiations at all and war with Iran would be inevitable.

Make no mistake, there’s still a lot of work to be done with Iran. We have to make sure that they stick to the terms of the treaty and expand it further so that one day all sanctions that can be lifted. As Iran begins to journey from the darkness and into the light, let us hope that all future Iranian Presidents are as open to negotiations and sense as Rouhani has been!