Interview with KM Faina Kirshenbaum: Middle East will turn into a nuclear arms competition

Recently in Israel I interviewed Knesset member Faina Kirshenbaum on the nuclear threat in the Middle East:

How would you rate the third round of negotiations between Iran, the European Union and the international community over Iran's nuclear program?

After the third round of negotiations, which the European Union and the world community led in the hope that they would be able to achieve progress in the negotiations with Iran, I think that this time all fears came true. Israel and the entire international community were convinced that there was no peaceful nuclear program in Iran.

If it had have been a peaceful program, there would be no problem to open and display to monitors everything that is taking place at nuclear facilities in Iran.

We understand that no one wants to start a war, but unfortunately, the only country that wants to do this is Iran.

Look at what happened over the past week. Iran launched new rocket, despite the fact that that showed the world that their "peaceful" uranium enrichment once again threatens Israel, which Iran wants to erase from the world map.

Will the world community unite against Iran's nuclear program and stop it?

The problem is that the world is already united.

But the main question is whether or not this union has led to the desired results, as long as everything stays on the level of words.

Real steps, sanctions or economic or financial sense, we do not see. If we have sanctions against Iran, however, that would be effective, then we would feel as if this union had been fruitful. The regime would have had to make concessions.

I hope that this decision will be made. Otherwise, not just Israel, but the entire international community will be face-to-face with the Islamic Republic armed with nuclear weapons.

In recent months, Turkey was engaged in intense nuclear development; can we consider that this is the first step to nuclear proliferation in the Middle East?

Turkey has long been trying to become a leader in the Islamic world. And it's not a secret.

Once they had disagreements with the European Union and the European Union did not accept Turkey into its ranks, it turned its face to the Muslim world. There is a specific competition between Iran and Turkey as to which will lead the Islamic world.

Iran has already achieved success. It is close to developing nuclear weapons, and there is no doubt that we will see Turkey in a nuclear arms race in the Muslim world.

We all understand and realize how dangerous this is.

I hope that sanctions and restrictions on Iran will become a model for dealing with Turkey and other states with nuclear ambitions.

I repeat, if we do not stop Iran, the entire Middle East will turn into a nuclear arms competition. And I assure you that the Islamic nuclear arms race will affect everyone.

Is it possible to stop the nuclear hysteria of the Middle East?

To do this, the Western world should unite and take strict measures. They may be sanctions, but they must be real. The West must not leave loopholes for avoiding them. Otherwise, we will all find ourselves in a more dangerous world.