In anticipation of tomorrow’s meeting among U.S. diplomats, their Russian, Chinese, and European counterparts, and Iranian officials, analyst Michael Rubin points out in today’s New York Daily News that “engagement is a tactic, not a strategy.” He urges President Obama to realize that, while military action against Iran should be a last resort, the United States should begin making military preparations.

Rubin points out that neither Richard Nixon nor Ronald Reagan–two former presidents whose diplomacy is frequently cited as reflecting the positive, or at least non-injurious, effects of diplomacy with hostile enemies–ever stopped making military preparations as they participated in talks. Rather, to the extent their negotiations were beneficial, they relied on America’s enemies’ awareness that they were backed by the threat of military force.

Iranian revelations last week of an additional uranium enrichment plant near Qom further highlight the belligerent nature of the regime, and its dedication to aggressive pursuit of nuclear weapons. President Obama and the world’s people should expect more surprise revelations from Iranian leadership in the months to come, according to my sources. The situation is extremely urgent and, as Rubin puts it, “without a finger on the trigger, diplomacy will fail.”

Have PoliticalMavens.com delivered to your inbox in a daily digest by clicking here