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that 40% of the world's tanker traffic passes.

Furthermore, Iran geographic position is also one of interest. Because of its proximity to India and Pakistan, both nuclear powers, and its neighbour Iraq, there are increasing charges that Ahmadinejad's government supports terrorist organizations. This author cannot ascertain the validity of those accusations, but if they are true, they would be in Iran's interest, because keeping the US military spread out reduces its effectiveness and is a drain of resources for America. The effect is a weak Iraqi state, which paves an opening for Iran to become a regional power, with Russian support. In terms of territory, population and economic power, Iran is well disposed to achieve that status, and it is in conflict with the United States interest.

Collaboration with Russia also means that Iran is capable of expanding its own economic and military base. Plans exist for the construction of more nuclear power stations, that will run with Russian technology. Also, the Russian armament industry has also sold to Iran equipment, varying from anti-aircraft artillery, to aircraft. The greater interest of the Russians is to impose a bi-polar model of peace in the Middle East, much reminiscent of the US-USSR standoff, by making Iran a counter-balance to Israel.

Currently, Israel enjoys an annual grant of several billion dollars from the United States. Recently, the United States also announced a 30-billion dollar programme to revamp Israel's armed forces. It can be safely said that Israel's Arab neighbours do not quite have the same military capability as the Jewish state. Even if the Russian technology sold to them through the years is capable of opposing Israeli forces, it is not enough, nor are its operators trained enough to use it effectively, as shown by the numerous conflicts since 1948 and Israel's dominance in all of them.

Countering Israel is also important, because there are concerns over its nuclear arsenal. Even if the country maintains a policy of uncertainty about its nuclear capabilities, there is a good chance that they exist, given the close collaboration between Israel and the United States. In the 1980's, Israel attacked and destroyed Iraq's only ever attempted construction of a nuclear reactor, and again proved its conventional military dominance in the region, to which it does not hesitate to resort. Attacking Iran, however, would be a whole different matter, because the Iranian forces are much larger and better

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