It is against this background that the Iranian nuclear program has come to symbolize the larger geopolitical tensions underlying the confrontation between the US and Iran. Indeed, the nuclear issue has served to rationalize the face-off, with Iran’s leaders playing to their domestic audience by whipping up nuclear nationalism and the US playing to the international audience by harping on the proliferation threat.
在上述背景下伊朗核计划已经成为了美伊冲突之下更宏观地缘政治紧张局势的象征。但事实上核事务只是双方借以对峙合理化的工具，伊朗领导人用它来向国内听众煽动核爱国主义情绪，而美国人则借此向国外听众宣扬核浓缩威胁论。