Nuclear proliferation in the Middle East is driven by motives not essentially different from those behind the nuclear arms race of the Cold War Periode. To argue otherwise, in particular while assuming that rational behaviour with regard to developing a nuclear option and to handling a nuclear inventory is alien to the Middle East, betrays a bias counterproductive to overcoming mutual threat perceptions. When tackling the problem of nuclear proliferation we must take into account the hidden

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... s between confl ict regarding territory and self-determination on the one hand and the proliferation issue on the other. The author argues for a comprehensive approach that puts seemingly unconnected issues such as a nuclear-weaponsfree-zone and the Israeli-Palestinian confl ict, all on the negotiating table.