Is Iran really the devil? The U.S. and Iran have a volatile relationship, and the Trump administration is showing readiness to take military action. But how are we to interpret the Iran situation?

Tensions are escalating between the U.S. and Iran. President Trump issued an order to strike Iran after they allegedly shot down a U.S. drone. He stopped the strike just 10 minutes before commencement, but one such unforeseen military conflict can begin at any moment.

The Cause: Trump’s Withdrawal From the Nuclear Deal

This recent conflict began when the U.S. withdrew from the Nuclear Deal.

In 2015 during the Obama administration, Iran signed a deal with a group of countries (U.S., U.K., France, Germany, China and Russia) that Iran would restrict uranium enrichment operations that are required to create nuclear weapons in exchange for lifting sanctions. The enrichment levels were set so that it would take over 1 year before they reached levels usable for nuclear weapons.

In May 2018, however, the Trump administration unilaterally decided to withdraw from the Deal on the grounds that it was flawed because it could only restrict Iran’s nuclear developments for 15 years.

After that, they imposed a list of 12 demands on Iran including the suspension of missile developments and government support towards military groups such as the Hezbollah in Lebanon. The U.S. restored sanctions on Iran in order to pressure them into accepting the new conditions.

To no one’s surprise, Iran resisted. They have refused to negotiate under pressure, and have demanded that sanctions be lifted as a condition for opening negotiations. On 8 July, Iran announced that they began uranium enrichment operations at levels above those agreed to in the Deal. Trump in turn threatened that, “Sanctions will soon be increased, substantially!”

Then Israel, a long-time adversary of Iran, came into the mix. Prime Minister Netanyahu claimed that Iran is planning to use enriched uranium to create nuclear weapons, and requested the U.K., France and Germany to reinforce sanctions.

Iran has been denying their intention to hold nuclear weapons, but they have also warned that they will begin operating more centrifugal machines depending on how the U.S. moves.

This is a highly complex situation, so the Liberty Magazine spoke to three specialists about tips on how to interpret what is happening. Their vastly different opinions can give us insight into the situation.