The Orbis

Issue date: 10/15/09 Section: News/Features

Media Credit: Getty/AFP Iranian President Ahmadinejad's stance on nuclear weapons worries international

The Obama administration convened with 10 close allies in early October to gain consensus on international sanctions against Iran. Iran has been pursuing nuclear ambitions and a possible weapons program with increased vigor for the past several years, worrying many in the international community. There has been widespread speculation on the tone and action that President Obama will take against Iran.

Some Vanderbilt students are watching carefully for signs of how gently the Obama administration will handle the Persian Gulf nation.

"It is high time [that] Obama decide whether he's going to conduct his presidency as a leader and commit to substantial action or as a perpetual candidate," said the Vanderbilt College Republicans president Brian Kelly.

Not all students suggest such strong measures. "We should not, ever use military might against them or their government," said senior Alysha Tribbett, citing the 1953 coup orchestrated by the CIA. "We tried that once, and turned the country into a vortex of misery for its people," said Tribbett.

Iran's sitting president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has proved a controversial and polarizing figure since his election in 2005. As early as December of his election year, he controversially suggested that the Holocaust was a myth. He also expressed hope that Israel would be "wiped off the map." Since his contested reelection this year, he has enjoyed decreased support from many Iranians.

Ahmadinejad has also demonstrated strong nuclear ambitions, accelerating Iran's existing nuclear program and, according to many critics, pursuing nuclear weapons. He has often been difficult in his communications with international regulatory commissions and with public figures, including a public back-and-forth with former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in 2006.

Iran's nuclear program actually dates to the 1950s, when it was established with help from the United States as part of the "Atoms for Peace" program. After the Iranian revolution in 1979, the program was briefly suspended before its revitalization in a less transparent form.

Apparently slow progress added up, as the Middle Eastern nation now sports a uranium mine, multiple research facilities and a nuclear reactor. According to the Iranians, they are scheduled to start operation of their inaugural nuclear power plant, Bushehr I, by the end of this year.

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