THE CONFRONTATION OVER IRAN’S NUCLEAR PROGRAMME: NATURE, SCOPE, AND LEGALITY
The international nuclear proliferation regime generally and the Nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in particular were created to prevent nuclear war and promote global security. However, it can be argued that the NPT has become as much a political instrument by which major states advance their national interests as a legal document that determines and regulates the rights and obligations of states, especially with regard to nuclear energy. Seen against that background, this thesis seeks to provide a legal analysis of the NPT. This analysis is carried out with regard to confrontation over Iran’s nuclear programme, where both sides to the dispute – the coalition and Iran – have used international legal argumentations when attempting to legitimize their positions and actions. Therefore, this thesis begins by providing introduction and literature reviews. It discusses the trajectories of the Iran-coalition negotiations and the necessity of rapprochement with Iran. This discussion begins with a brief historical review of Iran’s nuclear programme and its nuclear ambitions. Then, it attempts to answer this project’s research questions by providing legal interpretation of the NPT’s principles and scrutinizing its text and scope according to the interpretive rules of Article 31 and 32 of the Vienna Convention of Law of Treaties. It does so from the standpoint of doctrinal legal research, employing qualitative approaches to analyse law in the specific area of the nuclear non-proliferation regime. The discussion highlights weaknesses and omissions within the NPT, divergences in interpreting the legal scope of the principles of the NPT and the absence of agreed legal standards and mechanisms that are applicable to nuclear proliferation disputes. The thesis then moves on, through Chapters 5-8, to discuss Iran’s compliance with the NPT’s obligations and the responses of the coalition to Iran’s nuclear activities. It is strongly recommended that states should engage in discussions on establishing a new nuclear proliferation treaty that cover the gaps in the existing NPT. It also indicates the necessity for establishing legal standards and mechanisms under which the states concerned can determine nuclear non-compliance and what the non-compliant state must do to satisfy its nuclear obligations.
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