The Iranian Nuclear Impasse: The Protracted Imbroglio

Abstract

The Iranian nuclear deadlock has been one of the most contentious issues confronting the international community till date. The following article seeks to trace the tussle between the evolution of the Iranian nuclear aspirations and the politics of non-proliferation. It is divided into four main sections. The first section attempts to give a brief description of the problematic of the discriminatory politics of nuclear non-proliferation regime that Iran has been put through by the West. Iran’s nuclear aspirations can be traced back to the 1950s. Its strategic relations with the USA and leading European nations brought Iran significant scientific and technological assistance to set up a nuclear infrastructure. The second segment of the article delves into Iran’s nuclear activities during the Shah regime and the Western response. The post-Shah years brought about notable changes in the Western approach to Iran’s nuclear pursuit, the denial of nuclear technology to Iran being the predominant stand of the West especially the USA. The third section addresses the changes in Iran’s stand on the nuclear issue and the consequent changes in its relations with the West especially the USA. The last section of the article, that is, the concluding part attempts a dispassionate take on the rationale behind its nuclear aspirations, the veracity of its arguments and the future of the Iranian nuclear impasse.