2001–8: George W. Bush and the Failure of Confrontation
2001–8: George W. Bush and the Failure of Confrontation
Chapter Four looks at US policy during the administration of George W. Bush. The revelations that focused international attention on the Iranian nuclear programme in 2002 exposed divisions within the Iranian elite over the nuclear programme, with the pragmatists and reformists who controlled policy-making until 2005 making repeated efforts to pursue a negotiated solution. Hard line conservatives in the Bush administration, however, had no interest in compromise with Iran. They were committed to regime change (at best) or compelling Tehran to abandon its pursuit of the fuel cycle (at worst). Once again, however, the policy was incoherent and ineffective. It contained no meaningful incentives for Tehran while the coercive measures employed were ineffectual, with Washington's continued unilateralism undermining its efforts to bring effective pressure to bear. Bush's rejection of the outreach of the Khatami government, moreover, contributed to the discrediting of the latter and to the reassertion of Iranian hard liners. The subsequent election of Ahmadinejad to the Iranian presidency in 2005 guaranteed continued stalemate.
Keywords: George W. Bush, Khatami, Ahmadinejad, IAEA, Enrichment, Fuel Cycle, Nuclear energy, Nuclear weapons
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