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Issues: Iran
The newest national intelligence
estimate on Iran shows they have no intention of developing nuclear
weapons.
The U.S. intelligence community, in one of
the most comprehensive assessments they claim to have ever made,
showed conclusively that Iran has not had a nuclear weapons program
since 2003. It also showed that Iran has no foreseeable intention
of developing nuclear weapons. The Bush Administration claims
that Iran has no right to enrich uranium and, since it's
latest deal with Russia, has no need to. It is completely
hypercritical for this President, who pushed for new nuclear weapons,
to admonish Iran. We can only demand nuclear abolition if we subscribe
to nuclear abolition.
Peace Action was at the forefront of this issue
- calling for an (NIE) on Iran as early as February of last year.
We've made dozens of lobby visits, specifically addressing the
issue of Iran and the NIE, calling for direct diplomacy.
War with
Iran is avoidable and unnecessary.
The peace
community understands the full impact of war on our world. All
wars kill innocent civilians, hurt the environment, amass huge
national debts, and, above all, perpetuate security risks for
generations. You've spoken out through our online
petition and we've brought your concerns to Congress.
They responded to
our grassroots pressure.
The U.S.
has seen success in promoting disarmament with North
Korea. This success came without saber rattling. Instead
we sat at the table for talks with North Korea and successfully
negotiated a peaceful end to their nuclear program. We can have
the same success with Iran
if we actively engage in diplomacy.
The only
way to engage Iran is through direct and unrestricted talks.
Peace Action believes the ONLY
way to prevent a future war with Iran is through direct and unrestricted
talks with high level officials. No issue can be left off the
table because all the issues are connected. Peace Action believes
in the power of citizen diplomats. In keeping with this principle
we sent our Program Director Paul
Kawika Martin to Iran to engage the peace community there
and learn about Iranian culture. His trip is detailed in our Fall
Newsletter. Paul has arranged numerous speaking engagements
to discuss U.S.-Iranian relations in the Washington area.
Our affiliates have taken this
action to the next level inviting Iranian citizen diplomats to
speak in roundtable discussions with experts and citizens from
New York to Los Angeles. Dates are being finalized and you can
check with Peace Action's website for more details.
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