All options

U.S. vice president Dick Cheney has reiterated that “all options” remain on the table if Iran continues to refuse to abandon its nuclear programs. (CNN: Cheney: All options open for Iran) This is nuclear blackmail. Everybody knows the ultimate option on the table is the use of nuclear weapons. This option should not be on the table. In fact, using nuclear weapons is against international law, because its use would inevitably result in massive casualties among the civilian population and severe pollution of the environment with deadly radiation.

Almost everybody is affirming that a U.S. attack on Iran (with or without nuclear weapons) would be a catastrophe and because of this assessment, many people are convinced it will never happen. This is a very dangerous attitude. The Bush administration is without the slightest doubt capable of committing the most outrageous war crimes. And yes, they are stupid enough to do it. Nobody should just sit back and relax while the war mongers in the White House and the Pentagon are preparing to attack Iran.

The U.S. is pushing for more severe sanctions on Iran after the passing of the U.N.-deadline to stop its enrichment activities. There are already two aircraft carrier battle groups in the region. It is easy for the U.S. to manufacture an “incident” to have a pretext to attack Iran.

Cheney criticized China for pursuing military policies at odds with its ambition of a peaceful rise. This accusation is fundamentally dishonest. The U.S. military spending is higher than the combined total of all other countries and the U.S. remains by far the biggest arms merchant. His vice president has no moral right to lecture other countries.

China, Russia and the E.U. should tell Bush and Cheney that if the U.S. attacks Iran, the U.S. would be thrown out of the United Nations, diplomatic relations cut, its bases closed and troops expelled and the property of American companies abroad confiscated.

It is still not too late to stop Bush, but it is time to send a clear signal to the U.S. administration, to Congress and to the American people: Stop this madness, or face severe consequences.