aggvipul
The
commission's conclusion is that Iran's nuclear programs have now reached the stage at which it can only be stopped through military strikes - probably Israeli - or through an internal political decision to abandon the programs.
A. commission's conclusion is that Iran's nuclear programs have now reached the stage at which it
B. commission's conclusion is that Iran's nuclear programs have now reached the stage at which they
C. commission's conclusion that Iran's nuclear programs have now reached the stage at which they
D. commission's conclusion that Iran's nuclear programs have now reached the stage at which it
E. commission's had concluded that Iran's nuclear programs have now reached the stage at which they
Sometimes it is easier just to break down the original sentence:
The commission's conclusion is that:
Iran's nuclear programs have now reached a stage.
At this stage, the Iran's nuclear programs can only be stopped through military strikes - probably Israeli,
or the Iran's nuclear programs can be stopped through an internal political decision to abandon the programs.
Then, when we look back at the original sentence, it should be that "the stage at which
[they]": to refer to the Iran's nuclear programs. Hence, [A] and [D] is out.
Now grammar check:
- In [C], we lack the main verb. "The conclusion" is the main subject. The rest of the that-clause modifies this subject. There is no verb here to end the sentence.
- The only difference between [B] and [D] is simple present tense vs. past perfect tenses. Two points to consider:
a) Whenever a sentence changes the tense of the original sentence (vs. the sentence that does not do so), one should be careful to make sure that such change is completely necessary.
b) The use of past perfect usually refers to an action that happens
before another action or another point in time in the past. Hence, past perfect tense connotes a comparison with something else. Looking back at the original sentence, there is nothing supporting such comparison.
Hence, by retaining the tense, [B] is the correct choice.