In recent weeks, both Iran and the US have raised tensions in the Arabian Gulf against the backdrop of negotiations over the intent and extent of Tehran’s nuclear programme. Washington has dispatched minesweepers and aircraft to the region, while Tehran has threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz to protest a European embargo of its oil products.
Under no circumstances can the UAE, as a peaceful and progressive member of the international community, allow for the Strait to be closed. It is a vital international waterway through which our sea trade with the rest of the world depends and its open passage is a must in our national interests.
Similarly, Tehran has the right to develop its domestic nuclear programme, as long as it is for peaceful and non-military purposes. It is, however, obliged to confirm that its programme is for peaceful means. That its facilities are neither capable nor do they intend to produce weapons-grade material and that the programme is not used to undermine the peace and stability enjoyed by members of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
The impasse has continued for months, if not years, with progress only coming at glacial pace. What is not needed is a military build-up to try and sabre-rattle or threaten and test Tehran’s resolve.
This impasse will only be solved through international negotiation, mediation and trust, built up through face-to-face talks. That trust can never be in place if Tehran engages in aggressive rhetoric and tests its military hardware, or indeed if Washington continues to reinforce its military assets with minesweepers, fighter planes and support vessels.
Neither is it helpful for Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to announce a new target for enrichment between the 20 per cent-enriched uranium Tehran is already making and that of 90 per cent weapons-grade fuel. Such an announcement will only ratchet up tensions at a time when cooler, calmer heads are required. The only reasonable way forward is more talks — not rhetoric and sabre-rattling.
