A few days ago, there was a very important meeting held in the United Nations headquarters in New York. This meeting contained the group 6 (the permanent Security Council members plus Germany) besides the key Arab countries for the first time. The meeting was held upon an invitation by the United States and was dedicated to discuss the Iranian nuclear program.

As Iran has refused to cease the uranium enrichment process yet, and has been stalling in terms of the full cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in spite of the series of international sanctions adopted by the Security Council through three key resolutions, the international leading powers has to make a further move in the international course of action targeting the achievement of the Iranian full cooperation with the IAEA along with full transparency about the Iranian nuclear program.

The ultimate international goal in this regard is to make sure that Iran does not make an atomic bomb, and does not have the required capabilities to produce this bomb (certain developed level of industrial enrichment of uranium) through the Iranian cooperation with the IAEA and the international agency’s inspection of Iranian nuclear facilities for this objective.

Then, the latest international meeting came in this context with a proposal of implementing further international sanctions towards Iran. Eventually, the meeting did not reach such measure, or a consensus about such action, but it realized a very important and significant achievement on the Iranian nuclear issue. This achievement is represented by the first time participation of some key Arab countries of the moderate campaign in the region, especially some key Gulf countries neighboring Iran including Iraq.

This Arab countries’ first participation, based on the U.S. and western invitation, constitutes a qualitative strategic change in this file’s international management. This change is definitely against Iran and clearly not in its favor in terms of the issue of its nuclear program.

First of all, the involvement of neighboring Arab countries in the international decision-making on the Iranian nuclear issue, emphasizes Arab countries position as the first affected parties by this issue in geopolitical and security terms.

In addition, this involvement stresses, in a practical way, their role in tackling this regional and international issue, as the countries of the region neighboring the country in question, the matter that has gravely upset Iran as shown by Iran’s reaction and official statements.

Finally, this involvement has sent a very clear message by the international leading powers and Arab regional powers about the becoming serious level of this issue, and the currently forming seriousness of the international and regional parties in tackling this issue.

This international-regional first meeting on the Iranian nuclear issue is per se taking the international tackling of this question to the next serious level in strategic terms.