Iran has not increased its rate of uranium enrichment since September, as the Middle Eastern state considers a proposal to allow further refinement of its low-enriched material by outside powers, Reuters reported yesterday (see GSN, Nov. 11).
(Nov. 12) -
An anti-aircraft unit stationed outside Iran's Natanz uranium enrichment facility in 2007. Iran has not increased the pace of enrichment in several months, according to diplomats (Majid Saeedi/Getty Images).
Iran has continued operating around 4,600 enrichment centrifuges at its Natanz facility since August, but the nation had no fewer than 8,700 of the machines installed at the site as of late September, according to diplomats. The centrifuges in operation produced between 200 and 300 additional kilograms of low-enriched uranium since August, adding to a stockpile of material that Iran could refine into nuclear-weapon fuel if it chose to do so.
Problems with the machines might have caused the halt in enrichment expansion, but Tehran could also have slowed the process as a means of improving its chances of a nuclear compromise with world powers, according to diplomats and independent experts. Despite Iran's insistence that its atomic ambitions are strictly peaceful, Washington and other Western governments have long suspected the nuclear program is geared toward weapons development.
The International Atomic Energy Agency is expected to release further details on Iran's enrichment program in a report next week.
In addition, the U.N. nuclear watchdog plans to disclose its findings from a visit last month to Iran's recently disclosed and still-unfinished Qum enrichment site. Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei said last week that U.N. inspectors saw "nothing to be worried about" at the facility.
"I'd be surprised if any (sinister) evidence was found there," said one high-level diplomat based in Vienna. "Rather, the most important issue to be resolved is why this site exists at all, what is its chronology, is it plausible for (civilian) purposes?" (Mark Heinrich, Reuters I, Nov. 11).
A new U.S. Congressional Research Service report warns that Iran's assurances about its peaceful nuclear aims do not eliminate the possibility that its uranium enrichment program could support nuclear weapons development, United Press International reported yesterday.
In addition, former U.S. officials and independent analysts have suggested that Iran could obtain nuclear material from abroad to power a bomb, the report states.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has continued a probe aimed at clarifying the intention's behind Iran's atomic efforts, the analysis notes.
"Whether Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapons program is, however, unknown," the assessment states (United Press International, Nov. 11).
Meanwhile, Russia yesterday called on Tehran to accept the plan presented by ElBaradei last month for enriching Iranian uranium, Agence France-Presse reported.
Although Iran tentatively agreed to terms intended to defer its ability to fuel a nuclear weapon with material produced from its low-enriched uranium stockpile, the nation later appeared to balk at a call in ElBaradei's plan for the rapid transfer of much of its uranium.
"We are counting on Tehran to give an official, positive response in the very near future," said Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko (Agence France-Presse I/Spacewar.com, Nov. 12).
Elsewhere, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said yesterday his country was willing to increase its nuclear cooperation with other nations, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"Today, Iran's nuclear conditions are stabilized and we've entered the phase of nuclear interaction and cooperation, and today an important issue is international nuclear cooperation in construction of nuclear power plants, reactors and even Iran's contribution to a world fuel bank ... but there is always quid pro quo, cooperation and investment," he said in a television address (see GSN, Sept. 29).
Ahmadinejad's remarks suggested that Tehran might still be open to the uranium plan despite strong domestic opposition to the proposal, according to the Times. Leaders and high-level figures from Russia, Qatar and Turkey have met with Iranian officials in potential efforts to win Iran's acceptance of the plan.
"Freezing our nuclear program is no longer on the table," the Iranian president cautioned. "We have reached a point to cooperate with nuclear powers through the International Atomic Energy Agency."
Western powers have hoped that Iran's acceptance of the proposed uranium transfer would open a window to negotiate a permanent halt of the nation's uranium enrichment program (Borzou Daragahi, Los Angeles Times , Nov. 12).
Those people who yesterday told us that we should suspend our activities ... (today) they cannot say anything," Reuters quoted Ahmadinejad as saying (Mostafavi/Jaseb, Reuters II, Nov. 11).
"Iran will defend its nuclear assets in line with its national interests," he added, according to AFP (Agence France-Presse II/Yahoo!News, Nov. 11).
Although Iran's leaders have insisted their uranium enrichment program is strictly a civilian effort, "they could change their mind tomorrow," former IAEA chief Hans Blix said, according to CNN.
"I don't think they can convince the world about it, and only a termination or strict control of the enrichment process could calm the world," Blix said.
"The fact is that that enrichment very much increases tension in the Middle East, and it may even lead to other countries in the Middle East thinking of going for enrichment," he added, suggesting that Washington could still win a halt to Iran's enrichment effort by offering formal ties or a nonaggression agreement (CNN, Nov. 12).
Iran remains committed to developing a nuclear-weapon capability, an organization of Iranian exiles alleged today, according to Reuters.
"The public face of this policy seeks to maintain negotiations with the" five permanent U.N. Security Council member nations and Germany. "But behind the scenes, this policy is meant to facilitate ceaseless progress toward uranium enrichment above the 90 percent threshold as well as the production of nuclear warheads and ballistic missiles," said Maryam Rajavi, head of the National Council of Resistance of Iran.
The organization brought Iran's nuclear activities to light in 2002 but is considered a terrorist group by the U.S. government (Luke Baker, Reuters III, Nov. 12).