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Armed and Dangerous: Why a Rational, Nuclear Iran Is an Unacceptable Risk to Israel
(Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies-Bar-Ilan University) Steven R. David - In truth, the Iranian leadership is rational but under some conditions is likely to be willing to use nuclear weapons. History is full of examples of rational leaders who, when faced with the end of their regimes, did not hesitate to seek the mass destruction of all perceived enemies. Israel cannot rely on deterrence and needs to emphasize policies that assume that Iran will not be deterred. Israel must be prepared to launch a military strike to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power. If that approach is rejected, Israel must focus on ballistic missile defense, give serious thought to disarming a nascent Iranian nuclear capability, and be ready to preempt an Iranian attack. Unless and until Iran matches Rouhani's rhetoric with actions that deprive Iran of the capability of producing nuclear weapons, the threat of a nuclear armed Iran behaving recklessly remains. The writer is a professor in the Department of Political Science at Johns Hopkins University.