Publication

This paper examines some of the rhetoric emanating from US officials and policymakers on the potential use of military force to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability. The authors explain that the statements coming from the US' political and defense leadership are contradictory in the sense that while US President Barack Obama and other senior American officials now see the only relevant option for settling the dispute lies in diplomatic negotiations, officials in the US defense establishment still regard the military option as valid and capable of preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear capability. The authors conclude by contending that the removal of the military option weakens the position of the US administration and the international community in the final leg of the negotiations over Iran's nuclear program in July 2015.