Admiral Mullen: Attacking Iran Would Not Stop Nuclear Program

State Dept. Reiterates Call for Sanctions

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Michael Mullen today cautioned that a military attack on Iran would not be able to stop the nation’s civilian nuclear program, but could at best slow it down.

Speculation of a possible American attack on the nation has been rising since last week’s comments by White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, who said the nation would never rule out a military strike against the nation.

For the time being, however, the State Department insists the emphasis is on pushes for additional sanctions. State Dept. spokesman Philip Crowley today predicted that the P5+1 would be moving forward with specific sanctions in the UN Security Council in the coming weeks.

Iran has been enriching uranium to 3.5 percent for its nuclear energy program, and earlier this month began enriching to 20 percent in an attempt to produce fuel for its medical isotope reactor. The nation is looking to expand the number of sites for its enrichment activities, to minimize the potential damage to the program if the US or Israel attacks.

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.