Gulf Cooperation Council Warns Iranian Nuke Could Threaten Persian Gulf

March 26, 2004
Middle East Newsline

ABU DHABI [MENL] -- Gulf Cooperation Council states have been warned that an Iranian nuclear bomb could threaten the Persian Gulf region.

Speakers at a recent Gulf security seminar in Abu Dhabi reviewed Iran's efforts to construct an infrastructure for nuclear weapons and said such a development could destabilize Gulf Cooperation Council and other states. The speakers said an Iranian nuclear weapon would also trigger efforts by others in the region to acquire nuclear arms.

One prospect of an Iranian nuclear weapon is that Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey will reconsider their pledges against producing weapons of mass destruction. Egypt was said to have an extensive nuclear infrastructure while Saudi Arabia and Turkey were allies of Pakistan, which has exported nuclear weapons expertise and components.

"The announcement of an Iranian atomic bomb will send shock waves through the Gulf and north into Turkey and in to the border to Middle East," Geoffrey Kemp, director of regional studies programs at the Washington-based Nixon Center, said at the seminar in January. "Three countries, in particular, will quickly rethink their policy on weapons of mass destruction: Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. They will have grave concerns about an Iranian bomb and might, under certain circumstances, consider developing their own nuclear deterrent."

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