Report Examines Costs and Benefits of Military Force Against Iran
While U.S. military action would damage Iran's major nuclear facilities and weaken its military capabilities, consequences include direct and indirect retaliation against the United States and Israel, which would potentially lead to all-out regional war, according to an assessment by The Iran Project, a Rockefeller Brothers Fund grantee. The report, Weighing Benefits and Costs of Military Action Against Iran [PDF] examines the trade-offs of a military strike against Iran and notes that extended U.S. strikes would delay Iran's ability to become a nuclear state, but also would increase its motivation to expand its nuclear program. Authors and endorsers of the report hope to depoliticize this critical security issue during an election year, by offering a nonpartisan, fact-based assessment of the situation in Iran. The Iran Project is a nongovernmental organization working to promote diplomatic solutions between the United States and Iranian governments. It was founded in 2002 by the United Nations Association of the United States of America and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.
The authors, along with experts and former national security and military officials presented the report during a live webcast on September 13, 2012.
Related Links
Watch the announcement of report's release
Media Coverage
"No Rush to War," The New York Times, September 14, 2012
"Report: US strikes on Iran would risk major war," Associated Press, September 12, 2012