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Now that the 189 parties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty have recommitted themselves to the NPT following the May treaty review conference, it is time to renew efforts to translate words into deeds. The first serious step will come this month as the United Nations Security Council attempts to impose new sanctions to force Iran to halt its dubious nuclear programs.

But the intense focus on Tehran comes at the cost of leaving other nuclear violators under the radar. Syria is the notable case in point. Although it is not the evident threat to nonproliferation that Iran is, Damascus' stonewalling of International Atomic Energy Agency inspections of suspect sites marks an insidious undermining of the NPT. Meeting this week, the IAEA's Board of Governors has an opportunity to...