Recent discussions on the left regarding Iran's potential nuclear ambitions have reignited a contentious debate about nuclear weapons and socialist principles. The Spartacist League, for instance, argues that socialists should defend Iran's right to nuclear weapons, viewing it as a basic measure of self-defence for oppressed countries. They contend that the weak state of the left means the Iranian regime is left as the "only anti-imperialist force" in the region. This position, as highlighted by Duncan Chapel, directly evokes the problematic, and largely dismissed, notion of a "workers' bomb".
This podcast delves into this complex issue, exploring why the idea of a "workers' bomb" or any nuclear weapon serving progressive aims has been overwhelmingly rejected by revolutionary socialists. Drawing on critical analyses from Duncan Chapel, who explicitly condemns the concept of a "mullah's bomb" for Iran and argues that nuclear weapons are inherently tools of imperialism and destruction, posing an existential threat to all humanity, we will also revisit the historical context of these debates. Phil Hearse’s observations from "International" on the "Cold War" and the arms race, including how far the Soviet Union's atomic bomb contributed to its growing strength or reduced the need for it to politically challenge US imperialism, provide a crucial backdrop to understanding these historical discussions within the socialist movement. In this podcast, we examine the consistent socialist call for total global disarmament and the rejection of militarism, which fundamentally clashes with the idea of legitimising any nation's acquisition of weapons of mass destruction, regardless of its perceived anti-imperialist role.
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