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New York Times
11 hours ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Is Iran Really a Threat to the United States? A Debate.
On this episode of 'The Opinions,' the director of the editorial board David Leonhardt moderates a discussion between the Opinion columnist Bret Stephens, who applauds U.S. military action on Iran, and Rosemary Kelanic, a director of the Middle East program at Defense Priorities, who warns the United States against striking Iran. Below is a transcript of an episode of 'The Opinions.' We recommend listening to it in its original form for the full effect. You can do so using the player above or on the NYT Audio app, Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube, iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts. The transcript has been lightly edited for length and clarity. David Leonhardt: I'm David Leonhardt, the editorial director of The New York Times editorial board. Every week I'm having conversations to shape the board's opinions. This week we want to make sense of the war in Iran. Have Israel and the United States achieved their goals? Does Iran still have a nuclear program? And is the cease-fire real? To answer these questions, I've invited two guests with very different points of view. One is my colleague, the columnist Bret Stephens, who has applauded President Trump's strikes in Iran. Bret, welcome. Bret Stephens: Good to see you, David. The other is Rosemary Kelanic, the director of the Middle East program at Defense Priorities, a think tank. Rosemary warned against the U.S. getting involved before Trump bombed Iran. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
New York Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
After U.S. Strikes, Iran's Resolve to Build a Nuclear Weapon Could Harden
The American strikes on three nuclear facilities in Iran is likely to upend the country's thinking on whether to obtain a nuclear weapon. Before the strikes, which hit early Sunday in Iran, U.S. intelligence had assessed that Iran had not made the decision to build a nuclear weapon, although its large stockpile of refined uranium put a bomb within its reach, senior officials said. Even after more than a week of Israeli strikes on Iran, senior intelligence officials said that a 2003 religious ruling by Iran's supreme leader prohibiting the development of a nuclear weapon still held. But U.S. intelligence determined that such a prohibition would likely change if the United States entered the war and struck Fordo, Iran's most secure nuclear facility, or if Israel killed the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The United States struck Fordo and two other nuclear sites, at Natanz and Isfahan. 'The sad truth here is that by striking Iran, the U.S. has made it much more likely that Iran will want to obtain nuclear weapons,' said Rosemary Kelanic, the director of the Middle East program at Defense Priorities, a think tank that advocates a restrained foreign policy. She added: 'Even if the raids knocked out all of Iran's nuclear facilities — a big if — Iran will now be more motivated than ever to rebuild their capabilities and pursue not just uranium enrichment but actual weaponization.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
