Ready, Aye, Ready

"It would be preferable to resolve this diplomatically and through the use of pressure than the use of military force.  But that doesn't mean that option is not fully available - not just available, but it's ready.  The necessary planning has been done to ensure that it's ready."

The IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano has decided to favour the Islamic Republic of Iran with a personal visit.  In visiting Tehran it is clear that the IAEA anticipates Iran will agree to address issues raised by a report it released last year revealing the existence of credible intelligence pointing to past and ongoing activity of actions meant to achieve technological expertise in the building of nuclear bombs.

For its part, Iran claims that same intelligence should be set aside as clearly fabricated.  The IAEA responds by insisting its inspectors require free access to various technical sites, documents and state officials to enable it to weigh the information at its disposal against what they will be able to discern from that required exposure.  Credible conclusions cannot otherwise be achieved.

The military site of Parchin, where the IAEA report isolated the existence of a large containment vessel built a decade earlier for the purpose of conducting high-explosives tests is of particular and consuming interest to the IAEA.  An issue that the Republic casually dismisses.  The "strong indicators of possible" nuclear weapons development identified by the UN inspectors obviously represent a bit of hallucinatory delusions.

Where Western diplomats, based on satellite surveillance feel that Iran is in the process of cleaning up the site for the purpose of removing any incriminating evidence, Tehran claims a bogus interpretation of reality, meant for malevolent purposes; to sully the good name of the Islamic Republic, admonishing the West for its malign intent.

"Iran apparently wants to go into the Baghdad meeting with a positive wind at its back, demonstrating a posture of flexibility that it hopes will rebound to its benefit" - at the Iraqi capital where it will be involved in nuclear diplomatic talks with the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany to revive negotiations - is the interpretation nuanced sunnily by Mark Fitzpatrick, a nuclear proliferation expert.

Of course, there is the little issue of war games taking place out of Jordan with the combined special forces of Australia, Bahrain, Brunei, Egypt, France, Italy, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Lebanon, Pakistan, Qatar, Spain, Romania, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and the United States, under operation Task force Spartan for Exercise Eager Lion 12, to be considered.  For its undoubted implications.

That assemblage of nations interested in the outcome of Iran's negotiations with the Five+1 (Security Council plus Germany) are also practising the proverbial exercise that could become reality, since practise is reputed to make for perfection in execution.  "At a certain stage we are going to have to decide whether diplomacy isn't going to work", Daniel Shapiro, Washington's ambassador to Israel noted.

There remains "a brief window" to settle the impasse over Iran's nuclear programs through talks.  Israel warns the negotiators to recall how skilled Iran is at delaying tactics, working furtively and furiously in the intervals between promises to further advance their dangerous and disingenuous agenda.  One that could foreshadow an violent upheaval on a global scale.