The amount of propaganda spewed out by the Obama administrations against Iran is a ceaseless never ending diatribe of assumption without any basis in proof.

The UN permits all countries to pursue nuclear technology for peaceful means. Iran has declared in no uncertain terms that nuclear weapons do not hold any advantage in Iran's defensive posture. President Ahmadinejad and Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamanei has also clearly stated that it believes it to be against the tenants of Islam and are considered 'haram' a difficult word to translate into English but on lines of a sin.

The USA regard Iran as the master terrorist state and in terms of fear of what it is capable of doing around the world. It looks at its allies Syria, Hezbollah in Lebanon and to a lesser degree Hamas in Gaza. In other words it fears two rag tag militias and a country that has never broken the terms of the 1973 ceasefire accord and has helped the USA in its rendition program.

Iran has a great deal more to fear from the USA for it is the USA that has marched its formidable armed forces on the Middle East attacking Afghanistan, Iraq and lately Libya. The USA's allies include Saudi Arabia that is currently flexing its puny muscles in Bahrain, the UAE, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, Jordan, Egypt and Iraq and the 4th most powerful armed forces in the world backed by 200 nuclear war heads the rouge state, Israel.

Iran is surrounded by America in one form or another in its own back yard that is belligerent and threatening. Israel have made it no secret that it wants to attack Iran to destroy its nuclear facilities which like the Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) in Iraq are an American/Israeli illusion to serve as an excuse to make war on Iran.

The nature of Iran's government and life style make it an easy target for the West to discriminate but one of the fundamental tenants of the UN is the non-interference in a sovereign country’s domestic problems.

India is already the South Asian Superpower, it has delivery options, 4th Generation Aircraft, can project Naval Force comparable to that of the USA into the Indian Ocean (not just the Persian Gulf) and a great deal more money (being a Trillion dollar economy) than Iran.

It also leads Iran in Technological Development, Rocket Development and the weaponisation of Nuclear Weapons. Why not spend some time and effort on INDIA's "peaceful" use of rockets and nuclear development?

Or are you simply pushing out Iranian propaganda, designed to put a spin on the constant, insane carping on how they intend to destroy Israel? I mean, it isn't like Iran has tried to act on the quiet is it? They have repeatedly stated that they intend to destroy, for no apparent reason, another power in the region (that isn't propaganda).

India on the other hand is quietly building into a genuine superpower (up there with China & Europe) and has no need for propaganda... Please go peddle your misinformation elsewhere

Custard neither the author of this article nor I are talking about the balance of power in SE Asia. One respects India tremendously as it has made substantive changes and deserves to be represented with a seat on the Security Council. It must pay more attention to the yawning gap of the rich and the poor but that will come as it matures.

The point I attempted to make though obviously not with any degree of success in your understanding is that Iran has far more reason to fear the USA and its allies than the USA has to fear Iran and its allies. India is a central part of SE Asia, the USA marched it armed forces to attack Afghanistan in retaliation for 9/11 and Iraq because it wanted its oil. Hundreds of thousands of Afghan, Pakistani and Iraqi civilians have died as a result of a lie. Now if that is acceptable to you and you can see the danger Iran poses on the USA and its allies that is your point of view. I find it a repugnant genocide on a peaceful people while the world sits back and watches.

To the best of my knowledge relations between India and Iran are cordial please correct me if I'm wrong. As for Iran making it obvious that it wishes to attack and destroy Israel, Israel has made it abundantly clear that it wishes to attack Iran. Do you expect Iran not to defend itself? And finally I would like to know what misinformation that you accuse the author and me of spreading and how does it affect India and China?

Iran is a dangerous country in a region that is easily persuaded.
It,s former remarks toward Israel can never make it a trusted country.
Any action against Iran will be by united nations, which Iran has a vote.

India has been attacked multiple times by its neighbour, actually attacked. Do you see India or the ruling parties in India, running off at the mouth saying that they are going to destroy other nations? Do they go on national/international television threatening the very existence of other Countries in the region? Despite having the capacity to do so?

When Iran gets the runs on the board that India already has, when Iran can successfully defend its borders without trying to threaten world peace, without making existential threats against other nations, then and only then will Iran and its "non-violent" policies have any credibility. In terms of the region, it is the scene of the hottest & most dangerous arms race on the planet at the moment. India is emerging as the regional super-power with almost complete control of the Indian Ocean.

Trying to rewrite history, ignoring years of bluster, well-publicized & damning statements by President Ahmadinejad, stating straight out that he intends to destroy Israel, etc. by trying to suggest he was misquoted/misread? Really? The man just cannot stay off the airwaves, trying to suggest that the essential premise of his entire foreign relations agenda is a misquote? Propaganda that is so blatantly see through is self-defeating.

PS Iran & India are both part of Southern Asia, Iraq is the start of South-west Asia. India is not part of South-East Asia nor is Iran. South-west Asia includes Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Israel, Jordan, Turkey, etc. The Persian Gulf, Tigris/Euphrates & Iran/Iraq border are often viewed as the borders thereof.

If you dislike the regime in Iran and you fear for Israel's future that is your point of view though I can't see how you justify it. Think Custard how many troops do the USA have that directly threaten Iran that are actually in their theatre of war?

How many countries can the USA count on to support it as its troops are in Iraq and Afghanistan? The USA claims to fear that Iran is manufacturing a nuclear weapon and so it punishes the Iraqi people with sanctions. Israel already has 200 nuclear war heads.

Now think carefully would you be more frightened of a country that is already in possession of nuclear weapons and also has a nuclear shield if anyone had a nuclear weapon to attack it with or would you be more frightened of a country that the USA THINKS is developing a nuclear weapon and surrounded by enemies. Have you forgotten that it was the USA that encouraged Saddam Hussein to go to war against Iran?

Where is America today? In Iraq, in Afghanistan, the 5th Fleet is in Bahrain. The USA has stockpiled weapons and has bases in Saudi Arabia and Israel. Do you understand what I'm trying to point out to you? Iran has every right to fear the USA and its allies far more than the other way around. Iran wasn't involved in 9/11 it isn't involved with Al Qaeda or the Taliban both being predominately Sunni Muslim terrorists and Iran is Shiite Muslim. Iran doesn't want America in their back yard as they suspect that they will be making every effort to destabilize Iran in the hope of a regime change. This has nothing to do with India or with China.

Where is Pakistan and how many troops do they have in the area immediately adjacent to India's borders?

When compared to others in the region, Iran is actively promoting itself as a threat to the existence of others, in a manner never seen, even by their pugnacious ex-neighbour, Saddam Hussein. The sheer irresponsibility of the President of Iran, the dodgy attempts at propaganda, the Country is promoting at any one time up to three different explanations of what it is doing at the same place at the same time.

If you wish to peddle propaganda, try and keep your stories straight. Or add some humor(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGBVg2nUWMw) as Latma have done...

I would be much more impressed if Iran was working harder on social and political reform and on a concerted effort to build bridges of understanding with its immediate neighbours and with the West. Of course, as long as Ahmadinejad remains President of Iran I do not see this happening any time soon. Wasn't the legitimacy of his re-election questioned by the Iranian populace?

This article, and Ulis' comments, have only increased my misgivings about Iran's ultimate intentions. Just who is more paranoid than whom?

"Iran is fast becoming the preeminent Middle Eastern Power." Contrary to the thrust of the article, my reading is that Iran is indeed bent on a long-term path to either dominate or subjugate the middle east, or at least to unify a broad Islamic State to counter Western influence in the region, and to counter popular regional demand for, and movement towards, democratic reform.

The fact that Iran's middle eastern neighbours have seen fit to increase defense spending tends to put the lie to Iran's "peaceful" technological intentions. If Ahmadinejad's rantings were not truly indicative of Iran's foreign policy objectives, then why is he still in power? Reformation, yes, but to what ultimate end, and under whose control?

More mention of Sunni vs Shiite and of Taliban. With maintenance of such discrimination within Islamic nations, what possible chance can there be for regional peaceful coexistence, let alone global burying of the sword? Talk the talk is one thing, but if people want to be taken seriously in their talk of peaceful intentions, then they need to walk the walk.

Where do all these "threats to destroy Israel" come from Custard. The only threats I have heard regarding Iran and Israel are coming from Israel threatening to bomb Iran, and the USA consistently and ominously stating "All options are on the table". The Iranians have never threatened to attack Israel. I know there was the mis-translated "wipe Israel off the map" comment of a few years ago but that has been conclusively shown to be a mis-translation. The correct translation being "the regime in Israel will pass from the page of time", likening it to the Apartheid regime in South Africa and the Communist regime of the USSR.
Ahmadinejad has clearly stated the answer to the Israel/Palestinian issue lies in a referendum involving all the interested parties. This is hardly a threat to destroy Israel.
Iran has never attacked its neighbours which again puts it in quite a different category to Israel.

Iran threatening the survival of Israel? it is funny! Has Iran ever invaded any country in its contemporary history? NO. Whereas Israel is constantly threatening Iran with military attacks and has already engaged in several military aggressions against its neighboring countries. And above all, it has been engaged in a slow-motion holocaust of the Palestinians over the past several decades. It has massacred kindergarten Palestinian kids and primary school girls. It is no less than an Apartheid regime. It has turned the entire Palestine into an open-air prison and is starving the Palestinian kids to death. It is not a member of the NPT and has stockpiled hundreds of nuclear warheads. Custard! Are you a naive Indian brain-washed by Western and Israeli propaganda and spin machines or a real stooge of CIA and MOSAD?

Has Iran ever invaded anybody? Iraq? Lebanon through Hezbollah? Sistan/Balochistan?

Ahmadinejad has never threatened the existence of Israel? Ok...

http://www.reuters.com/article/2008/06/02/us-iran-israel-usa-idUSDAH23449220080602

Or has tried to achieve that goal by arming the murderous cowards that use truck bombs to remove their political opponents?

http://english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2011/06/2011618103354910596.html

The world is waking up, the cozy little environment that saw Baloch freedom fighters labeled terrorists by Washington, for fighting against Iran, is ending. Who knew? We all thought Obama was Ahmadinejad's puppet, now it looks like it was the other way around...