Nuclear powers push world to brink of apocalypse

Nuclear powers push world to brink of apocalypse: Analyst

Sun Aug 26, 2012 2:27PM GMT

A political analyst has lashed out at the West’s campaign to halt Iran’s nuclear energy program, while the colossal nuclear stockpile of the global powers is pushing the world to the brink of a nuclear apocalypse.

“With over 2000 highly operational nuclear weapons already in the world, it seems ridiculously ironic to try to attribute global insecurity to Iranian nuclear energy program which the US, Israel and some western countries claim to include military purposes,” Dr. Ismail Salami said in an article published on the Press TV website.

The author noted that instead of focusing on Iran's peaceful nuclear energy program on merely political grounds, the international community should be concerned about “the states in possession of the myriad nuclear bombs across the world.”

Relying on figures released by the arms control website, Salami argued that despite western countries’ obsession over Iran's nuclear energy program, they themselves pose the most dire threat to global security as they possess the highest number of nuclear warheads, especially highly operational warheads.

By definition, the analyst noted, highly operational denotes nuclear warheads which “can be shot at any desired time.”

Quoting statistics published by the Arms Control Association, Salami further stated that while the United States possesses about 5,000 total warheads, 1,737 of which are operational, Russia, France, and UK alone possess a total of over 1,900 deployed strategic warheads which are ready to be fired at any moment.

“In addition to the aforementioned report, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) revealed in June that at the start of 2012, eight states - the United States, Russia, the UK, France, China, India, Pakistan and Israel - possessed approximately 4,400 operational nuclear weapons. Nearly 2,000 of these are kept in a state of high operational alert. If all nuclear warheads are counted, these states together possess a total of approximately 19,000 nuclear weapons.”

Salami noted that even Israel possesses 80 highly operational nuclear warheads.

“Israel, which follows a policy of nuclear ambiguity, [is] … widely known to possess 300 to 400 nuclear warheads with 80 of them in high operational alert according to SIPRI, that is, they are ready to fire.”

The analyst stated that ignoring the above facts, a number of the so-called international bodies “lie through their teeth” about Iran’s nuclear energy program which Iranian leaders vehemently enunciate is meant for only civilian purposes, and have shut their eyes to the potentially apocalyptic horror these weapons can unleash in the hands that hold them.

“An inquisitive mind may ask: Why should Iran bear the brunt of nuclear crucifixion while there are already over 2000 highly operational nuclear bombs which are capable of plunging the world back into a state of the pre-creation cosmic blob?” Salami concluded.

ASH/SS/AZ