Iranian MPs debate shifting nuclear doctrine and leaving the Non-Proliferation Treaty

Iran's parliament and political establishment are engaged in a heated debate over the country's nuclear doctrine and a possible withdrawal from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), an international agreement meant to stop the spread of nuclear arms and related technology. The discussion comes as the United States and Israel have named Iran's ability to develop a nuclear weapon as the main aim of their war against Iran. An sitting MP and a former lawmaker set out opposing views to Euronews on 13 November.

Call to review the doctrine

Kamran Ghazanfari, a member of Iran's parliament, told Euronews that Iran cannot remain indifferent to US and Israeli threats and that its nuclear doctrine should be reviewed. In his view, an adversary must know that a nuclear attack on Iran would draw a reciprocal response. Ghazanfari does not believe the lack of nuclear submarines and bombers weakens deterrence, since missiles can carry warheads too. He argued that a change of doctrine has effectively already happened and said MPs are pushing for NPT withdrawal, though obstruction keeps the plan from reaching the parliamentary floor.

The opposing view

Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, a former Iranian lawmaker, told Euronews that even several warheads would not give Iran real nuclear deterrence, which in his words also requires a deterrent balance and the ability to deliver a final blow. He regards Iran's military strategy as conventional and doubts that the "certain things" mentioned by Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, refer to an atomic bomb. Falahatpisheh sees NPT withdrawal as groundwork for future wars against Iran and says the security council has not backed the MPs' triple-urgency bill.

Other institutions

On Thursday, Iran's Assembly of Experts, whose main task is overseeing the leadership, issued a statement calling for an examination of NPT withdrawal and a review of defence doctrine. Iran's Foreign Ministry, for its part, stressed that the country remains committed to the treaty.