Paulo Portas, speaking on TVI, addressed the conflict between Israel and Iran, emphasizing that the three nations currently engaged are nuclear powers.
“The mere fact that we are on the brink of war speaks volumes. This situation is particularly grave as the second-largest nuclear power in the world, the United States, is in the theater of operations along with Israel, a recognized yet undeclared nuclear power, and a country which is a former empire aspiring to join the nuclear group,” he remarked, summarizing the Middle Eastern conflict as “a war among nuclear powers and one that aims to join them.”
The former Defense Minister also remarked that “this conflict could quickly escalate into a global conflict” and noted that currently, to resolve the situation, “any alliance or mediation system counts for little or nothing,” be it “the United Nations, the European Union…”
“They are out of the game,” he added.
Paulo Portas further highlighted that the “coordination between the US and Israel was flawlessly synchronized,” but criticized the current situation where “now we have an Israeli prime minister who seems to be directing the course of American foreign policy.”
Regarding the dangers arising from the conflict, especially after the US attack on the Fordow nuclear facilities, Paulo Portas warned that “if Iran acquires nuclear weapons, we have a serious issue as there is no more control over nuclear weapons proliferation,” also noting “the immediate consequence that two Islamic countries will have nuclear aspirations: Saudi Arabia and Turkey.”
“Iran is not very popular in the region but harbors an unmatched doctrinal ambition,” the commentator noted, adding, however, that “Iran is currently very weakened, deservingly so, as it expressed such imperialist ambitions and supported many action groups in third-party countries, obviously resulting in its weakened state in Lebanon, Syria, and even Yemen over the past year.”
Iran-Israel Conflict and Nuclear Arms Concerns
The conflict between Israel and Iran began in the early hours of June 13, with Tel Aviv launching an unprecedented attack on the Persian country, allegedly to prevent the advancement of Iran’s military nuclear program. This, despite Iran repeatedly denying the development of nuclear weapons and claiming the right to conduct peaceful nuclear activities.
The fear of the existence and use of nuclear weapons in a potential global conflict particularly concerns the Portuguese.
Portuguese respondents showed, in an opinion poll conducted in 12 European countries, the most concern over the use of nuclear weapons, a potential Third World War, and a European war beyond Ukraine.
“The majority of Europeans are waking up to the reality that they live in a vastly different world. Although the fear of a Russian attack on NATO territory is less widespread than some analysts suggest—although it is felt intensely in certain border states like Poland, Estonia, and Romania, as well as in Portugal—it is the growing fear of a nuclear conflict that most clearly captures the new European anxiety,” states the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) in the study published today.
