Former Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council Abdallah Bishara: Iranian Nuclear Weapons Threaten the Countries of the Region

The folliowing are excerpts from an interview with the former secretary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council Abdallah Bishara:

Bishara: A nuclear Iran is a danger to this region, to the Arab world, and may even pose a global threat. As you know, Iran's desire for nuclear weapons is for deterrence, because there is hysteria and fear. There is constant fear in the ruling Iranian institutions. They see nuclear weapons as a deterrent against the American position, against the Israeli position, against future attacks. But our interests are greatly affected by the existence of nuclear weapons.

Interviewer: Why don't the Gulf States see Iranian nuclear weapons as a factor which counterbalances the Israeli nuclear weapons?

Bishara: Come on, Daoud.

Interviewer: I'm only asking.

Bishara: No, my friend. They are Iranian weapons for Iranian purposes and Iranian ideology. The most dangerous thing is to give the ideologues nuclear weapons. Iran is a prisoner of ideology, a prisoner of ambiguous decisions, a prisoner of not making final decisions, which conform to international norms of behavior.

Interviewer: But Iran has abandoned the concept of exporting the revolution.

Bishara: No, that isn't true. Why the nuclear weapons? Why is [Iran] involved in Iraq? Why does it support Hizbullah? Why is it adopting the Palestinian cause? Why is this Iran's business? Does Iran want to adopt the Palestinian cause, or does it want to support the Shiites in the region? No, it wants, it supports Hamas and Hizbullah, and does not accept the logic of two states, a Palestinian state alongside an Israeli state. It does not want this.

Interviewer: Don't you want Iran to support the Palestinian cause?

Bishara: No, we want it to support the roadmap, the peace efforts that are now underway, and the negotiations. Iran supports Hizbullah. Iran's logic is Hizbullah's logic... is Iran's logic to interfere.

Interviewer: Do you expect Iran to fall in line with the American program?

Bishara: No, I don't expect it, but I ask Iran to stop interfering.

Interviewer: But even the Arab public accepts this attitude. The Arab public supports Iran's approach and supports resistance, doesn't it?

Bishara: What Arab public, my friend Daoud?

Interviewer: I am asking you.

Bishara: There is no "Arab public." There are interests. I am talking of the logic of interests in our region. Our interests lie in stability and in resolving the Palestinian issue according to the peace map. Our interest lies in stability in the Gulf, and to reach some sort of coexistence. We want Iran to coexist with the logic of the state and to abandon the logic of revolution.