U.S. and Russian strategic perspectives of Iran different views of nuclear proliferation

Do Russia and the United States share the same views of nuclear proliferation? This thesis seeks to answer this question by considering the case of Iran. Both nations are concerned about the spread of nuclear weapons, yet have taken opposing stances on Iran's nuclear program. The United States contends that Iran is using its civilian nuclear program to build an atomic weapon. Russia, on the other hand, does not publicly acknowledge such a view. The conclusions of this thesis are that threat perceptions have shaped U.S. and Russian views of nuclear proliferation. Both countries have supported Iran's nuclear program, but their timing coincided with major shifts in Iran's diplomatic orientation. When the Cold War ended, they were left with contrasting threat perceptions of Iran

Department dc:contributor.department

National Security Affairs (NSA)

Grantor dc:publisher

Monterey, CA; Naval Postgraduate School

Year dc:date.issued

2006

Author dc:creator

• O'Connor, Edward A.

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Clunan, Anne L.
• Tsypkin, Mikhail

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/10945/2958

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:calhoun.nps.edu:10945/2958