Iran Cannot Be Allowed to Go Nuclear

The US must prevent Iran from going nuclear, even if it means military intervention, write Daniel Coats and Charles Robb, heads of a bipartisan think tank on the issue. “An Islamic Republic of Iran with nuclear weapons capability would be strategically untenable,” they argue. Even if Iran doesn’t use its arsenal, simply having one would magnify its influence in the region.

The group dismisses international inspections or joint ownership of enrichment facilities as insufficient to ensure that Iran stays clean. And while a diplomatic solution is possible, negotiations must come from a position of strength. So while military intervention should “remain an option of last resort”—since it would invite terrorist reprisals and heighten unrest in the region—the next president should “begin building up military assets in the region from day one.” (More Iran stories.)