Madam, - In your edition of January 17th under an article entitled "Chomsky blames US for Iran crisis", you quote Noam Chomsky as follows: "Iran would be crazy if it did not develop nuclear weapons".
It is an unfortunate reality that Dr Chomsky's observations have almost a perverse logic to them. Contemporary Iranian history has been beleaguered by American intervention to the detriment of that country.
In 1953, with the collaboration of the British, the Americans helped to undermine the elected social democratic government of Iran. They installed the Shah, who acted as their enforcer in the region and guaranteed US control over the vast oil reserves.
It was in this political and social context that Islamic extremism filled the vacuum left by the subversion of the democratic government and heralded the rise to power of the Ayatollah Khomeni on popular anti-American sentiment.
Once again, along with its surrogate state in the region, Israel, the US is threatening military intervention against Iran. At a time when the mullahs and their constituency are being exposed to democratic and secular forces inside the country, America's posturing will rally the nation behind the current regime. For the Iranian people know that they can only guarantee and assert their independence by acquiring the ultimate sanction, namely a nuclear capability. - Yours, etc,
SEAN WHELAN, Nenagh, Co Tipperary.