Baghdad is all atwitter over the P-5+1 talks with Iran beginning today. A sandstorm kept many European and Western diplomats from landing, but the Iranians were out in full force, with Iranian negotiator Saeed Jalili leading the way.

The dispute over Iran’s controversial nuclear program has reached crisis point. Despite increasing foreign sanctions in recent months, Tehran is continuing its nuclear work, refusing to cooperate, and has indeed tripled its monthly production of higher-grade enriched uranium.

Sanctions, diplomatic tools, and other measures have neither changed Iran’s nuclear policy, nor had a visible impact on Iran’s nuclear program. Yet, some in the United States and the international community still dismiss the looming reality of a nuclear-armed Iran.

Americans are being played for fools by Iran—and fooling themselves. There is no case to be made that Iran is not pursuing a nuclear weapons capability.

Only overwhelming sanctions leading to Iran’s economic collapse can work, but with Russia and China shielding Iran, such crippling sanctions appear unlikely.

AEI report finds that Iran can acquire the fuel needed for a nuclear weapon by mid-August 2012.

Inspired by the Pakistani role model, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) is transforming Iran into a military dictatorship, where the IRGC is not only constitutionally tasked with "safeguarding the revolution and its achievements," but also rules Iran.