Bennett Ramberg, who has served as a foreign policy analyst and a consultant to the Department of State, US Senate, Nuclear Control Institute, Henry Stimson Center, Global Green and Committee to Bridge the Gap, in his article carried by The New Republic on Wednesday has raised the question: "Should Jerusalem bring its bomb out of the basement?"
According to him, Israel, for at least the moment, is the sole possessor of atomic weapons in the Middle East, with an arsenal that now includes approximately 200 warheads. But it is also the only nuclear-armed nation to hide its cache behind a façade of official silence-neither confirming nor denying its existence.
He argues that Iran's mounting nuclear capability arguably demands a reconsideration of this stance. Explicitly announcing its nuclear status would have its advantages. It would upgrade Israel's deterrent. It would send a clear message to the mullahs and their allies.
"But disclosure poses its own challenges. The nuclear pariah spotlight now shines on Iran. Were Israel to declare itself a nuclear power, that attention would instantly shift to Jerusalem, given global political biases. It could legitimate Iranian nuclear weapons in the court of international opinion. What's more, Israel's declaration could ignite (or excuse) Arab pursuit of nuclear weapons, bringing yet more peril to an already unstable region," according to the Ramberg.
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