U.S. is laying groundwork to contain Iran's nuke strategy

U.S. officials insist they are not resigned to a nuclear Iran and are pressing negotiations to prevent it from joining the world's nuclear club. At the same time, however, the administration has set in place the building blocks for policies to contend with an Iran armed with atomic weapons.

Those elements, former officials and analysts said, include the newly revised defense shield for Europe and deeper defense ties to Gulf states that feel threatened by Iran.

Andrew Kuchin, a Russia expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said administration officials clearly are thinking about how to contain an Iran armed with nuclear weapons.

“It would be pretty irresponsible on our part if we didn't,” he said.

The administration shies away from talking about a nuclear-armed Iran, believing that such talk implies that the United States has given up hope of stopping the Iranians from getting the bomb.

“It is our clear policy that an Iranian nuclear-weapons capability is unacceptable, and we are working with our allies and partners to ensure that Iran desists from working toward such a capability,” said Colin Kahl, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for the Middle East.

In recent weeks, U.S. diplomats have pushed with the country's international partners to nudge Iran into agreeing not to use its nuclear facilities to build atomic weapons.

Several negotiating sessions in Geneva have led to a U.N. draft plan under which the Iranians would ship enriched uranium out of the country for processing instead of using their own nuclear sites, which also could be used to build weapons covertly. Iran indicated Tuesday it might agree, but details still are being worked out.

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