Pat Dollard | Young Americans

Related: Iran Test-Fires Missile Designed To Hit Israel

Jerusalem Post:

US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Wednesday that a nuclear-armed Iran is “going to spark an arms race” in the Middle East.

Iran test-fired a new missile Wednesday it claimed had a range capable of reaching Israel and US bases in the Middle East. A US government official confirmed there was an Iranian launch and said Washington was working to determine details such as the missile’s range and trajectory.

In an appearance before a Senate Appropriations panel, Speaking at a Senate hearing, Clinton did not refer directly to the launching of the Sajjil-2 missile but rather a range of threats posed by Iran. She reiterated that the Obama administration opposes Iran getting a nuclear weapons capability and that it is relying for now on diplomatic pressure to stop it. Amid reports that Iran has conducted a missile test, Clinton said that a wide array of threats, including attempts by terrorists to obtain nuclear weapons, represent a “daunting” challenge for the United States.

Clinton also described a nuclear capability in Teheran as an “extraordinary threat,” and said the US goal is “to persuade the Iranian regime that they will actually be less secure if they proceed with their nuclear weapons program.”

The secretary said she did not expect there would be any significant progress in getting Iran to enter into discussions on incentives to abandon a nuclear program at a time when there is a campaign there for the presidency.

“Our goal is to persuade the Iranian regime that they will actually be less secure if they proceed with their nuclear weapons program,” Clinton told the Senate panel.

She said that while there is a lot of discussion about timetables, “the goal is the same: a nuclear armed Iran with a deliverable weapon system is going to spark an arms race in the Middle East” and the greater region.

“That is not going to be in the interest of Iranian security,” Clinton added. “At the same time, we see a growing recognition among a group of countries that they do not want to see this reality take place.”

She said that she did not know when the US might “see some openness and some willingness to engage on this very important issue,” but likely not during Iran’s election season. “But we are going to pursue our diplomatic efforts,” Clinton said.