New Evidence on Nuclear-Free Mideast Debate

Three new pieces of evidence support the hypothesis that the more Washington stonewalls on Israel's nuclear stockpile, the more Washington will lose the initiative to Israel's opponents.

First, Russian President Medvedev is in Syria [Haaretz 5/11/10] proclaiming Moscow's interest in supporting both a nuclear-free Mideast (referring of course to nuclear arms) and the development of a Syrian civilian nuclear industry, which, he reminds forgetful Americans, is a "right" of all states.

Second, the placing of Israel's nuclear armaments on the IAEA agenda for its upcoming June 7 meeting puts the official spotlight squarely on the issue that Washington and Tel Aviv have for decades tried to keep in the background.

Third, in the context of U.S. support for India's nuclear program in recent years and Russia's support for Iran's, China is now raising its support for Pakistan's nuclear program.

On 5/7/10, I discussed the possibility that initiative on efforts to combat nuclear proliferation might be slipping out of Washington's hands. Medvedev's remarks provide a bit of confirmatory evidence. The IAEA decision provides further evidence, effectively "certifying" Third World condemnation of the Western hypocrisy over Israel's nuclear stockpile as a legimate global concern. Once the taboo against discussion of the topic is eliminated, change becomes possible, so this tiny crack in Israel's shield of secrecy may have significant implications.