Arabs threatened by Iran's nuclear program?

Moon of Alabama does a wonderful job of taking apart the claim that the Persian Gulf Arab states supposedly "feel threatened" by Iran's nuclear program.

I am often amused by people who hide their own agendas behind others. This myth of how "Arabs are threatened by Iran" is mostly the work of the Israelis working hand-in-glove with the repressive, discredited pro-US dictatorships that rule over these so-called "moderate" Arab states (what's moderate about Saudi Arabia? I dunno.)

The fact is that the Arabs are more threatened by Israel's actual, existing nuclear weapons rather than the imaginary, non-existent nuclear weapons of Iran.

We are also told that "the Arabs" may decide to get their own nukes in reponse to Iran's alleged nuclear weapons. Well, if that's true, then why haven't they obtained their own nukes in response to Israel's existing nuclear weapons, especially after having lost several wars to Israel? After all, if one country's nuclear program can cause other countries to obtain their own nukes in some sort of vicious cycle of proliferation, then shouldn't that cycle be traced to the original nuclear power in the region -- Israel -- rather than Iran?

Comments

[Amir P.]

The Arabs are not threatened by Iran's non-existence nukes. They feel threatened by an independent and powerful Iran that decides to have a nuclear program and gets it. To understand this better, you need to consider the alliance between Israel-US and the Arab kings: Arab kings guarantee Israel's security while Israel&US support the kings' brutal regimes. Without this alliance, the ordinary Arab people (who are mostly anti-Israel and anti-America) will revolt against their brutal rulers, and threaten Israel's security.

In other words, Israel and US are happier to have Arab dictatorships rather than Arab democracies. In response, Arab kings pay back by securing Israeli and American interests. Win-win-win situation for Arab kings, Israel, and the US, and a big loss for Arab people.

Now, with this background in mind, Arab kings are frightened by the fact that Iran is setting a good example for ordinary Arabs. Once Arab people see a powerful Iran that has maintained its independence and has survived sanctions and wars, they will rise up against their brutal kings.

This is what the Arab kings are afraid of, not Iran's nuclear program.