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Responding to what they claim is a serious threat to the United States, a group of UCLA students has begun circulating a petition “imploring” the government to take action against Iran’s nuclear development.

At the start of winter quarter, a group of students conceived of a petition that would urge Congress “to take immediate and serious diplomatic action to deal with the real threat of nuclear Iran,” and so far they have received a few hundred signatures, said Jasmin Niku, a second-year political science student who helped develop the petition.

Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Los Angeles, has already signed the petition, and Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Sherman Oaks, has expressed interest in signing it as well.

So far, groups as polar as the Bruin Democrats and Bruin Republicans have expressed enthusiasm for the petition, said Trevor Klitofsky, a first-year political science student who helped organize the petition.

The goal of the students is to obtain about 1,000 signatures, along with a list of students’ hometowns, and to send the petition to the congressional representatives of each hometown listed.

Rather than join with organizations like Environmentalists Against War or Stopthebomb.com, which circulate petitions online, Niku said it was more effective to talk to students one-on-one about why the issue is critical.

One possible diplomatic action Klitofsky hoped the petition would affect is the passing of the Iran Freedom and Support Act, which outlines that it should be U.S. policy to support the transition of Iran to a democratic government.

The petition was prompted by the threat of Iran gaining nuclear capabilities that it could potentially use to make weapons, rather than for the peaceful purpose of civil nuclear power, as the regime asserts.

Under the U.N. Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, of which Iran is a part, countries are not allowed to advance nuclear weapons and weapons technology. The final goal of the treaty is complete disarmament.

Earlier this week, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad threatened to withdraw from the treaty if international pressures aimed at stopping their nuclear power research for civilian purposes escalated, though he did not withdraw.

Despite Ahmadinejad’s statements to the contrary, the United States and other European countries believe that Iran’s research is in fact being directed toward developing nuclear weapons.

This situation is just the latest in the past months of escalating tension between Iran and the United Nations, leaving concerned students far from the Capitol but still searching for ways to take action.

“Something diplomatic has to be done,” Klitofsky said. “We as students can’t just sit here and do nothing.”

Aharon Klieman, a visiting professor of political science, pointed to three “lethal components” of the situation between Iran, the United States and the international community at large.

First, the Iranian president has expressed dogmatic views to the exclusion of others, Klieman said.

Second, Iran will soon have the capability to build nuclear weapons, defining “soon” as “several years at the most” and possibly months, Klieman said.

And third, “under the existing regime, the Iranian president could have exclusive control over the decision whether to use the nuclear option. He has his finger on the button,” Klieman said.

“The hope is that Iran will become more moderate over time,” he said, “but perhaps we don’t have the luxury of time.”

Niku expressed a similar concern.

“The situation really is serious. Iran has an irrational president with no democracy to stop him,” Niku said.

This is the political backdrop against which students decided to take up the issue and demonstrate that “students actually have a voice and can make a difference,” Klitofsky said.

With reports from Bruin wire services.