TJHairball
I love this place
The backdrop:
1979: The US-backed Shah is deposed in an internal revolution. A "national emergency" is declared by President Carter; this has been renewed by every president since.
1980: Reagan capitalizes on Carter's inability to deal with the ongoing "Iranian hostage crisis" and wins in a landslide.
1980-1988: Iraq, with overt support from the US, goes to war with Iraq. The Reagan administration covertly sells Iran weapons as well.
1991: Iran stands out to condemn US action against Iraq, in spite of the recent bloody war. Iran accepts Iraqi refugees.
The Petrodollar:
1995: President Clinton declares a new national emergency in relation to Iran, immediately after Iran imposed restrictions on the development of its petroleum resources. This has been renewed since and remains in effect. Clinton said of this emergency:"following the imposition of restrictions with regard to the development of Iranian petroleum resources, Iran continued to engage in activities that represent a threat to the peace and security of all nations, including Iran's continuing support for international terrorism, its support for acts that undermine the Middle East peace process, and its intensified efforts to acquire weapons of mass destruction."
1998-2000: Iran puts together its 2000-2005 development plan, including an "Iranian oil bourse" to trade oil not in dollars.
2001: Terror attacks on the US begin a US military occupation of Afghanistan.
January 2002: Bush Jr names Iran in an "axis of evil."
November 2002: Iraq starts selling its oil under the oil for food program in euros.
Spring 2003: US invades Iraq. Oil accounts are re-denominated in dollars.
March 21 2006: US ally Qatar, newly home to a massive US military base, opens a dollar-based oil bourse to compete with the proposed and ever-nearing Iranian oil bourse.
April 30 2006: Iran announces that the Iranian Oil Bourse will open in a week or so.
Israel and nuclear power:
1957: France starts building Israel a research reactor, starting off Israel's nuclear research program.
1964: Reactor goes online.
1967: The US builds the Shah a 5 MW research reactor.
1968: CIA reports that Israel probably has developed a nuclear weapon.
1972: Pakistan begins research on nuclear power.
1998: Pakistan successfully tests the bomb.
2003: Iran's nuclear energy program goes public.
Now: Israel states that Iran's nuclear program is a threat to its existence. The US says it will defend Israel's interests... and so does Israel, which has stated several times that it will not attack Iran.
Iran has its own native supply of uranium. Roughly 65-260 tons of yellowcake can come out of its central uranium mine (mixed in 130,000 tons of ore), and a new uranium resource estimated to produce 30 tons of yellowcake per year was recently discovered. Iran thus does not need to import anything to continue to develop its nuclear program; sanctions therefore will halt nothing. The US has major deployments to the east and west of Iran.
1979: The US-backed Shah is deposed in an internal revolution. A "national emergency" is declared by President Carter; this has been renewed by every president since.
1980: Reagan capitalizes on Carter's inability to deal with the ongoing "Iranian hostage crisis" and wins in a landslide.
1980-1988: Iraq, with overt support from the US, goes to war with Iraq. The Reagan administration covertly sells Iran weapons as well.
1991: Iran stands out to condemn US action against Iraq, in spite of the recent bloody war. Iran accepts Iraqi refugees.
The Petrodollar:
1995: President Clinton declares a new national emergency in relation to Iran, immediately after Iran imposed restrictions on the development of its petroleum resources. This has been renewed since and remains in effect. Clinton said of this emergency:"following the imposition of restrictions with regard to the development of Iranian petroleum resources, Iran continued to engage in activities that represent a threat to the peace and security of all nations, including Iran's continuing support for international terrorism, its support for acts that undermine the Middle East peace process, and its intensified efforts to acquire weapons of mass destruction."
1998-2000: Iran puts together its 2000-2005 development plan, including an "Iranian oil bourse" to trade oil not in dollars.
2001: Terror attacks on the US begin a US military occupation of Afghanistan.
January 2002: Bush Jr names Iran in an "axis of evil."
November 2002: Iraq starts selling its oil under the oil for food program in euros.
Spring 2003: US invades Iraq. Oil accounts are re-denominated in dollars.
March 21 2006: US ally Qatar, newly home to a massive US military base, opens a dollar-based oil bourse to compete with the proposed and ever-nearing Iranian oil bourse.
April 30 2006: Iran announces that the Iranian Oil Bourse will open in a week or so.
Israel and nuclear power:
1957: France starts building Israel a research reactor, starting off Israel's nuclear research program.
1964: Reactor goes online.
1967: The US builds the Shah a 5 MW research reactor.
1968: CIA reports that Israel probably has developed a nuclear weapon.
1972: Pakistan begins research on nuclear power.
1998: Pakistan successfully tests the bomb.
2003: Iran's nuclear energy program goes public.
Now: Israel states that Iran's nuclear program is a threat to its existence. The US says it will defend Israel's interests... and so does Israel, which has stated several times that it will not attack Iran.
Iran has its own native supply of uranium. Roughly 65-260 tons of yellowcake can come out of its central uranium mine (mixed in 130,000 tons of ore), and a new uranium resource estimated to produce 30 tons of yellowcake per year was recently discovered. Iran thus does not need to import anything to continue to develop its nuclear program; sanctions therefore will halt nothing. The US has major deployments to the east and west of Iran.
