General Wesley Clark on Fox News
January 16, 2006
Transcription by RegNYC

Brigitte Quinn: The standoff with Iran over nuclear power growing more tense. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice saying Iran has crossed the threshold over it's nuclear stance and has to be taken before the UN Security Council, and fast. Joining us this morning General Wesley Clark, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander and a Fox News contributor. General, what really, realistically can the UN Security Council do to stop Iran from making nuclear weapons.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Well, if Russia and China go along, sanctions can be applied. These could be economic sanctions, and ultimately people could refuse to buy oil and do any trade with Iran, whether that would actually deter them from going ahead and getting a nuclear weapon is the question.

Brigitte Quinn: Mmm hmm.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Myself, I'm, I'm a fatalist on this. I do believe the Iranians have had a long-term plan to acquire nuclear weapons. They, this was well-known. We've been watching the since I, since before I retired from the military. I warned in my congressional testimony in 2002 that if we were going after one country that was a threat to world peace, we should be focused on Iran, not Iraq.

Brigitte Quinn: Mmm, Hmm.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Now the bill is coming due.

Brigitte Quinn: Right, now if, if they have been working on this nuclear program for, for years and years, should we assume then that isolating them via the Security Council isn't really a threat, because during those years they've probably had time to stock-pile whatever goods and supplies that they need that would be taken away through sanctions.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Well, I think that's right. I don't think the Security Council is going to be the kind of threat we want. It's not the sanctions per se, it's the ability of the Security Council to control all of the the diplomatic and economic intercourse with, with Iran. If Russia and China and Pakistan and all it's neighbors really are determined that Iran should renounce its, its plans to get nuclear weapons, that could bring tremendous leverage. It's just, it's, it's my assessment however, looking at, at the Iranian government and their long-term plans, that they're going to do everything possible to undercut and resist this, and it's not clear that China and Russia would go along with such sanctions.

Brigitte Quinn: Right, and, and the longer we wait, the closer Iran gets to what Israel might call 'the point of no return,'

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Exactly.

Brigitte Quinn: Not necessarily bomb production, but, but just the knowledge. Now, I've heard that that's anywhere from six months to a year away. That's not a lot of time.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: There's not a lot of time, and we should, you know, while we keep the military option on the table, there should be no illusions about the military option. The military option is going to be difficult, there are no guarantees that all of the site are located and there will be enormous consequences for the United States if the military option is used, economic consequences, diplomatic consequences, consequences in the war on terror, and so forth. So this is not an option that can be looked at lightly. It's simply the fact that if Iran is determined to acquire a nuclear weapon, we have to determine ourselves whether that's acceptable.

Brigitte Quinn: Mmm hmm.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: And if it isn't, then all options have to remain on the table, and our leaders have to do everything they can to make those options usable.

Brigitte Quinn: Right. Now, we did have General Moore on just about twenty minutes ago or so saying that, and certainly not saying that it's any decision that anybody would make lightly, but saying it, essentially, it is doable. Would you agree with that?

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: I think it's possible to construct a military option that could be, could approach adding five to eight years to the development cycle of the Iranian nuclear weapon. In other words, you could set them back.
Brigitte Quinn. Mmm Hmm.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: I don't think that you can totally eliminate the possibility, and remember after such a strike, it's very possible that A.Q. Kahn and Pakistan or some other country would come rushing to the aid of Iran.

Brigitte Quinn. Mmm.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Ahmadinejad doesn't-

Brigitte Quinn: But how, how would you set them back- before I let you go General?

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: You'll take away a certain number of their facilities. You'll take out their command and control, their missile testing, their missile launching facilities, their aircraft, delivery systems. A whole lot of things will go out along with the nuclear facilities that we know about. This will all be a setback, but it won't necessarily prevent some other nation intervening immediately to feed them the resources they need to, let's say, conduct a terrorist strike back against us with weapons of mass destruction.

Brigitte Quinn: Frightening scenario, General Clark.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: It is a very tough scenario.

Brigitte Quinn: It is. General Clark, thank you very much for talking with us this morning.

GENERAL WESLEY CLARK: Thank you, Brigitte.