Writing in this week's Defense News, Efraim Inbar, a Political Studies professor at Bar-Ilan University and the director of the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, argues,

A nuclear Iran would strengthen its hegemony in the strategic energy sector by its mere location along the oil-rich Arabian Gulf and the Caspian Basin. These adjacent regions form the "energy ellipse," which holds more than 70 percent of the world's proven oil and more than 40 percent of natural gas reserves.

Improving revolutionary Iran's ability to intimidate the governments controlling parts of this huge energy reservoir would further strengthen Iran's position in the region and world affairs.

Nigeria on Nov. 12 threatened to report Iran to the U.N. Security Council if an illegal arms shipment sent from an Iranian port and discovered in Lagos violated sanctions over its nuclear program.

Nigeria's foreign minister made the comments after meeting with his Iranian counterpart Manouchehr Mottaki over the arms cache, which included rockets and grenades, and obtained access to an Iranian in connection with the probe.

Earlier this week, Nigeria's intelligence agency said it had been monitoring the shipment, which was disguised as building material, before it arrived in the country. It also said the shipment's destination was Nigeria, and "any argument that the cargo came into the country by mistake is false."