Unilateral war won't build a safer world
The debate about the military effectiveness of the U.S. airstrikes against Iran misses a more profound point: Brilliant battlefield success by itself will not ensure a nuclear-free Iran.
The U.S. attacks capped a year-plus Israeli campaign that utterly exposed Iran's 'axis of resistance' as a paper tiger. My own guess is that the strikes were highly effective. Uranium enrichment facilities rely on elaborate machinery, steady power supply and structurally sturdy environments. All that is likely to have been compromised by the 14 bunker-buster bombs that hit their targets with precision. But even assuming the damage was severe, most experts I have spoken to estimate that the strikes would have set back Iran's nuclear program by one to two years. By contrast, the Iran nuclear deal finalized in 2015 placed Iran's nuclear program in check for 10 to 15 years.
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