Nuclear negotiations and Western hypocrisy

THE nuclear stand-off between Iran and the US is often framed as a matter of international security, but rarely is it interrogated through the lens of fairness or consistency.

- CHLOE MALULEKE

At the heart of the matter lies a glaring double standard. Iran, a signatory of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), is subject to strict inspections and legal obligations, while Israel - widely understood to possess a secret nuclear arsenal - faces no such scrutiny, having never signed the NPT.

This contradiction is central to understanding why so many in the Global South view Western nuclear diplomacy not as a tool of peace, but as an instrument of geopolitical control.

The NPT was built on a bargain: non-nuclear states like Iran agreed to forgo nuclear weapons in exchange for the right to develop peaceful nuclear energy under international oversight.

Iran has long maintained that its program is civilian in nature and has consistently allowed International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspections. Yet, it is treated as a rogue state, constantly threatened with sanctions and military action. Israel, by contrast, faces no pressure or inspections. The message is unmistakable: nuclear capabilities are acceptable for allies of the West, but intolerable for states that challenge US hegemony.