▲ | koevet 13 hours ago | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
But wasn't Iran already docile to America? Sure, it wasn't a crystal clear ally like Saudi or the Gulf states, but behind the anti-Zionist propaganda and "evil US" blabbering, there were decades of backchannel negotiations, regional pragmatism, and even moments of cooperation — especially when mutual interests aligned, like in post-Taliban Afghanistan or the fight against ISIS. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
▲ | slv77 5 hours ago | parent | next [-] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Iran sponsored insurgents in Iraq and provided the training and means to build explosively formed penetrators that killed 196 US troops: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2020/01/03/... The US assassinated Soleimanis and Iran reponded with direct middle attacks on US bases: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Martyr_Soleimani Iranian activity agains the US goes back decades and has escalated recently: https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2025/06/19/iranian-and-iranian-... Other than a brief thaw in relations in 2015 there is nothing that would suggest that Iran’s anti-US rhetoric is for domestic consumption and for show. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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▲ | PeterHolzwarth 13 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
America and the broader west (and even much of the not-west) has been working to counter Iran's nuclear ambitions for decades. A nuclear armed Iran means much the middle east, which considers Iran a dire enemy, would feel compelled to immediately launch their own nuclear weapons programs. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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▲ | crossroadsguy 12 hours ago | parent | prev [-] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. Iran vehemently wanted nukes and the West (and its strong/rich local vassal states) vehemently didn't want Iran to have the nukes and Iran knew that and the West knew that Iran knew that. So no. (In fact SA has quite some money into Pakistani nukes; not sure what's the "access" agreements :P) |