In the face of Iran's defiant stance on its nuclear program, Israel has signed a contract with Germany to buy 2 more submarines capable of firing nuclear missiles.
The one billion deal was signed last month and Germany has agreed to take up costs of upto a third of the value. The submarines will be operational shortly and add to Israel's expanding military resources.
It already has 3 Dolphin-class submarines which can fire nuclear missiles, but the newer models can stay submerged for longer.
Israeli security sources said that in the light of Iran's nuclear ambitions and an Iranian President who has called for Israel to be "wiped off the map", the submarines are needed to counter long-range threats.
Owing to Israel's small land area, its military planners have a clear preference for submarine-launched nuclear weaponry. US Defence Intelligence Agency has estimated that Israel has about 60-85 nuclear warheads. Submarine-based missiles give the country a credible nuclear deterrent.
The semi-official news agency Mehr said that Iranian authorities would announce a "very important achievement" in an area of nuclear technology.
In its response to the western incentives package, Iran has offered to address the issue of suspension while reminding the world of its "stablizing role" by offering to its influence with Hezbollah to organize an exchange of prisoners between Israel and Hezbollah.
Iran will be further encouraged in its stance by the divided responses from the international community to its proposal. While China and Russia prefer to puruse negotiations, France will have none of it till the suspension of uranium enrichment and ironically America's war on terror has "severely compromised" its attempts to curb Iranian nuclear amibitions.
With the war on terror eliminating Iran's two main regional rivals - the Taliban in Afghanistan and Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq without replacing them with stable structures has given Iran regional supremacy. Iran's links with its neighbors need to be understood to see why "Iran feels able to resist western pressure". If the US uses military force to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions, it would open itself up to retaliatory destabilizing intervention by Iran for its forces in Iraq.
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