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Featured Guests

Dirk Jameson
Lt. General, USAF (Ret.), US Army
START, Nuclear Nonproliferation
Heather Hurlburt
Primary Organization Title, National Security Network
Nuclear Nonproliferation
Heather Hurlburt
Lawrence Korb
Policy Analyst
Terrorism retaliation and response, National security organization, policy, and process; U.S. foreign policy, arms control, and defense budget; NATO; conventional arms trade; military budget, ballistic missile defense.
Center for American Progress
Matthew Rojansky
Executive Director
Nuclear weapons, bipartisanship, cooperation for the greater good in America, Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD's), biological warfare, chemical warfare, nuclear non-proliferation
Partnership for a Secure America
Michael Landweber
Associate Director ,Partnership for a Secure America
Nonproliferation, export controls, India-Pakistan sanctions, MANPADS, UNSCR 1540 and WMD terrorism
PSA
Patricia DeGennaro
Adjunct Assistan Professor, New York University's Center for Global Affairs
US Foreign Policy, International Security, Civil Military Affairs, Military Policy, Wartime and Post-Conflict Transition
Huffington Post
Richard Klass
President, Veterans’ Alliance for Security and Democracy
Richard Klass
Stephen Zunes
Senior Analyst
Israeli-Palestinian conflict: US policy, peace process, arms control, human rights and international law, Palestinian perceptions and views of the Israeli peace movement, Palestinian Christian community, the roots of the extremist Islamic groups, domestic roots of U.S. policy as based on strategic concerns, good overview of the history of the conflict and, in particular, a history of the peace process and the U.S. role; U.S. policy towards practically anywhere in the Middle East as well as Islamic movements, military/strategic issues, terrorism and human rights. In terms of countries, I could talk about the Gulf (including Iran, Iraq and the Arab sheikdoms), Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco and Western Sahara. In considering the war on terror: Yemen, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Somalia.
Stephen Zunes

Featured Funder

Iran, Turkey and Russia Meet to Discuss Security

Could this undermine the US?
Issue Area:


Iran, Turkey and Russia Meet to Discuss Security

“If the US and its allies think they could hold the stick of sanctions and then sit and negotiate with us, they are seriously mistaken.”

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

On Tuesday, June 8, in a display of their regional power, a security summit was held in Istanbul where leaders from Russia, Turkey and Iran met to discuss security in Asia. Coming just a few days prior to the United Nations Security Council meeting about imposing tighter sanctions on Iran’s nuclear program, the summit sends a message to the United States.

Ahmadinejad stated that the one-time nuclear agreement between Iran, Turkey and Brazil has received support from other countries and was designed to break the stalemate over its nuclear program: “The Tehran declaration provided an opportunity for the United States government and its allies. We had hoped and we are still hopeful that they use the opportunity well. I must say opportunities like this will not be repeated again.”

The US continues to believe that Iran wants to build nuclear weapons while Iran maintains that their nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

The nuclear exchange deal Iran made with Turkey and Brazil last month has motivated the US to persuade other members of the UN Security Council (including China and Russia) to vote for tighter sanctions. Officials say the vote on sanctions could come as early as Wednesday.

Ahmadinejad is scheduled to meet individually with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Putin stated that the sanctions should not be excessive and called Iran’s nuclear program peaceful. Putin did not provide details about Russia’s decisions on the sanction vote. The US is expected to be displeased with Putin’s meeting with Ahmadinejad.

How will Iran react if tighter sanctions on their nuclear program are imposed? What does it mean for the US if the UN Security Council votes against imposing tighter sanctions? If Russia does not vote for sanctions against Iran, will this threaten the new START agreement between the US and Russia to reduce their own nuclear arsenals?