The presidents of Afghanistan, Iran and Pakistan met in Tehran on Sunday to discuss shared challenges and how the countries could work together to address regional issues. President Hamid Karzai, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and President Asif Ali Zardari agreed to jointly tackle extremism, terrorism and drug trafficking. Although largely devoid of specific measures, the summit set a tone of cooperation for future dealings. In its coverage, The New York Times noted that the meeting was “the latest sign of Iran’s emergence as the regional power.”
On a related note, the EastWest Institute recently released a threat assessment of Iran’s nuclear and missile potential. Representing the views of both Russian and American scientists, the analysis found that Iran “could produce a simple nuclear device within one to three years” and barring outside assistance it “could develop a nuclear warhead for ballistic missiles in six to eight years.” But it will take the country at least ten to fifteen years to “independently master the technologies necessary for advanced intermediate-range ballistic missiles or intercontinental ballistic missiles.” The panel concluded that “the missile threat from Iran to Europe is thus not imminent.”
On the other hand, everything we know about Iran could be wrong.
Photo from Abedin Taherkenareh/European Pressphoto Agency.