Iran proves my point

[plazul]

The unexpected announcement by Iran stating that it will allow international inspections of its nuclear program and other "guarantees" effectively negates the accusations by Israel and DoD that they are engaged in nuclear weapons development. They have every right to have a nuclear energy program and every right to defend themselves against an attack on their facilities. I'm waiting to see how the Bush Administration will respond to this as it proves that they are lying in order to ramp up American fears about Iran's intentions.

Iran also says that the Koran prohibits weapons of mass destruction and that they will continue to behave as a Muslim nation. They also correctly pointed out that peace in the region is not possible without Iranian participation, something I strongly support, and the international community knows it.

If we let them, Iran could be our most important partner in the war on terrorism. We don't have to settle all of our differences but a good faith peace and trade agreement between us, including the return of confiscated Iranian assets, would go a long way towards achieving a lasting peace in the Middle East. We must let Iran be Iran and accept that our brand of Democracy is incompatible with Shiite Muslim culture.