Iran is enriching uranium 'on an industrial scale'
By Damian McElroy and David Blair
The confrontation between Iran and the West over its nuclear programme deepened yesterday when Teheran announced that it had started enriching uranium on an "industrial scale".
The move is in breach of three United Nations resolutions and will raise fears that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's regime is seeking a nuclear weapon.
In a carefully orchestrated atmosphere of national celebration, Mr Ahmadinejad said: "I proudly announce that as of today Iran is among the countries which produce nuclear fuel on an industrial scale." He was speaking at a gathering at the Natanz uranium enrichment facility. Iran claims its intentions are solely aimed at generating electricity. But the technology it claims to have activated could be used to produce material essential for a nuclear bomb.
If uranium is enriched to three per cent purity, it can be used to fuel nuclear power stations. If it reaches 90 percent purity, then it becomes weapons-grade and can form the basis of a bomb.
Iran is believed to be using 3,000 centrifuges to enrich uranium. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) estimates that with this number of centrifuges it is about two years away from having enough weapons-grade uranium for one bomb.
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Who cares?!? It doesn't appear that any Western government gives one flying fig about whether or not Iran gets the bomb, they do pay a lot of lip service, but otherwise nothing...
Pertinent Links:
1) Iran is enriching uranium 'on an industrial scale'
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
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