Pacific Views

Tensions Increase With Iran

As our own Magpie highlighted recently, tensions between the U.S. and Iran are so high that it's entirely possible a war could start accidentally. Just in the last couple days ...

Iran takes 15 British soldiers into custody without any violent exchanges in disputed territorial waters claimed by both Iraq and Iran after boarding an Iranian ship.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has cancelled a planned visit to the United Nations because the U.S. government has refused to issue him a visa in time, though a U.S. official insists that it was handed over early enough. The U.N. Security Council will be voting shortly on whether or not to add to existing sanctions against Iran because of their refusal to stop uranium enrichment. Meanwhile, the U.S. and Britain are seeking quick action over sanctions:

The United States and Britain said today they are pushing for a Security Council vote Saturday to impose further sanctions on Iran, choosing not to work for unanimous council support or to wait for the Islamic Republic's president to make his case in person. ...

As linked yesterday, reports have surfaced that the U.S. or Israel may have kidnapped a former Iranian intelligence officer. General Ali Reza Asgari was Iran's deputy defense minister prior to 2005 and went missing last December in Istanbul. Asgari's wife insists that he was kidnapped, saying that he had no reason to flee Iran.

This Time article on the capture of the British personnel mentions also the outstanding issue of 6 Iranian diplomats captured by the U.S. in Erbil, Iraq, an unresolved dispute that infuriated Iran. Iran has also accused the U.S. of being involved in the kidnapping of an Iranian diplomat in Baghdad.

Powder keg, meet match.

Posted by natasha at March 23, 2007 02:46 PM | Iran | Technorati links |