Clinton Vows ‘Crippling Action’ if Iran Becomes Nuclear

Secretary of State Again Presents Iranian Nuclear Weapon Development as a Fact

Following a growing trend in the Obama Administration, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton today presented the US claim that Iran is developing a nuclear weapon as an absolute fact, as opposed to speculation for which even the IAEA concedes no evidence exists.

During the interview on Thai television today, Clinton warned Iran that “once they have a nuclear weapon” they won’t actually be any safer, because the US intends to take “crippling action” against them, including dramatically improviding the military capacity of US allies in the Gulf, presumably referring to Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Only last week, speaking to the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), Secretary Clinton declared that the US wouldn’t hesitate to use its military against Iran, and had previously said that part of discouraging the nuclear program was to leave Iran wondering if the US would invade, “the way that we did Iraq.”

Israel’s Deputy Prime Minister Dan Meridor, who yesterday warned the US faced a “loss of credibility” in criticizing Israeli settlement activity, condemned Clinton’s comments, saying they indicated the US was resigned to Iran having nuclear weapons. Israel has repeatedly threatened to attack Iran even over its civilian nuclear program and has vowed it will never allow the nation to have an atomic weapon.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.