These claims may have some credibility though, considering Iran’s current fuel shortages, caused by its lack of facilities to refine its plentiful oil resources. These fuel shortages have caused public unrest, and open and harsh criticism of the Iranian government. Never the less, Iran has refused to allow international inspection of its nuclear program. The invasion of Iraq has seriously tipped the balance of power in the Middle East towards Iran whereas before, Iran and Iraq kept each other in check. From a realist perspective, this puts the US at a disadvantage. The US needs support in the region for additional priorities like fighting terrorism and increased oil production. An American assault on Iran could worsen these other problems. The one side issue of oil production is one that stands out from the rest because it has more of an impact on the American economy than on security. With oil prices already extremely high, the American economy facing a crisis, and Americans becoming extremely anxious over the cost of their daily commutes; Iran can feel secure since it controls much of this needed oil. Terrorists are operating in countries outside of Iraq where the US has little or no military presence. Therefore it is relying on these other countries to take care of the problem with their own security and intelligence services. If the US gets into an outright military conflict with Iran, these other countrieswould face a dilemma between allying with Iran or the US. As of now, they can have diplomatic and economic relationships with both countries, albeit in a delicate manner. From a liberal perspective, Iran has much to lose by continuing with its nuclear program. The UN has already imposed sanctions on Iran, and Iran has already lost much of its respect around the world because of its belligerent attitude towards international inspections of its nuclear program. Also, Iran’s testing of long range missiles, threatening of a US Navy vessel, and other...