New Iran Nuke Deal Still Very Possible: Analyst

Aug. 31—With the current deal that governs Iranian nuclear weapons development set to expire, and with the NATO/European signatories demanding that sanctions on Iran be "snapped back" into place, a senior intelligence analyst and diplomat with decades of experience in the region says that a new deal—brokered between the United States and Iran, with the help of the Russians—is still very possible.

"You need to step back from all the aggressive rhetoric coming from Iran and understand that a deal was on the table to be signed, but [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu blew all that up by attacking Iran," said the source. "The Iranians have been told privately that the U.S. felt it could not stop Bibi from going in. Whether that is true or not, the U.S. says that it acted as a brake on Netanyahu's wider goals—to force a regime change in Tehran and to plunge the country into chaos, while bombing it back to the Stone Age. Trump forced the war to have a limited goal, which may or may not have been achieved."

"You cannot stop Iran from developing a bomb if it wants to," said the source. "They have advanced science capabilities on a par with Israel, which everyone knows has nuclear weapons. Even now, Iran does not want to develop nuclear weapons and would do so only to avoid a total potential defeat by Israel. So, the problem is simple, really. Prevent the Israelis from forcing Iran to do what it does not want to do. And tell the regime change proponents here in the U.S. to stay out of this. Give Iran the space to make a deal, and the other stuff will sort itself out.

Gaza Conflict Creates Diplomatic Opportunity

"There is a window now to make the deal happen that Bibi blew up," said the source. "The Israelis cannot attack Iran while they are fully engaged in this insane Gaza operation. The Iranians are not in any position to support their proxies Hamas and Hezbollah, so they are going to have to make deals for themselves. Which, by the way, is why sane Israelis who don't want to drink Palestinian blood know that this military operation is not necessary. Hamas is already politically and militarily finished without Iranian support. But I digress. The window is open for an Iran nuclear deal, but you need to get them back to the table."

"Iran lost face and faith in Trump and his envoy Steve Witkoff when, with a deal on the table, they let Bibi attack," said the source. "They [Iran] are going to have to be offered something, as a sign of good faith, to get them back talking. Trump should cancel the snapback sanctions, as long as they are willing to talk. Tell those Euro fools to shut the fuck up and let him take care of this. In addition, I believe that he will also offer them additional sanction relief when a deal is signed, and perhaps participation in regional development deals in Gaza and elsewhere, as things work their way through there. In short, tell Iran that a deal will end their isolation."

Proposed Framework for Peaceful Nuclear Development

"As for the sticky issues that prevent a close," said the source, "let the Russians work out with the Iranians a suitable plan that would allow them to refine uranium for peaceful use and let Moscow take control of their stockpile. Then Russia and the U.S. should guarantee Iran a robust peaceful nuclear program, offering them advanced reactor technologies and reprocessing systems. The Russians have said that they would offer Israel iron-clad guarantees that these programs would not represent a threat to Israel. The U.S. can offer both Israel and Iran security guarantees."

"As for inspections," the source said, "you have to take that away from the UN and IAEA. They can never be trusted again after they played a role in providing Israel fake justifications for the attack and also turned over the names of Iranian nuclear scientists for assassination. There are people who can design an inspection regimen, people like [former weapons inspector] Scott Ritter, who can make sure this is done fairly and who want to see a peaceful outcome to this."

"I think that Trump needs to move quickly and boldly to make all this happen," said the source. "Maybe he can still get his Nobel Prize."