Posted on 02/04/2006 5:48:25 PM PST by blam
Iran raises the nuclear stakes after being reported to UN
By Philip Sherwell in Washington and Kim Willsher in Paris
(Filed: 05/02/2006)
Iran escalated its nuclear showdown with the West last night by ending international inspections of its atomic sites and preparing to restart uranium enrichment.
Hours after Iran was reported to the United Nations Security Council for its nuclear programme, its officials were taking the first steps towards carrying out their threat to produce the material - which Western intelligence believes will be used for atomic weapons.
Maryam Rajavi: 'Either the UN acts or the mullahs will have the bomb'
A spokesman for Iran's hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, denied earlier reports that he had already ordered the resumption. "Ahmadinejad has not taken any fresh measures today," he said.
However, an Iranian diplomat said that the president could only make such an order after a letter expressing Iran's intention had been received by the International Atomic Energy Agency at its headquarters in Vienna. Such a letter was due to be delivered late last night.
The flurry of diplomatic activity came after a resolution to report Iran to the UN, drafted by Britain and its European allies, was passed by the IAEA on the third day of an emergency board meeting. It was immediately condemned by Iranian officials.
Javad Vaidi, head of the Iranian delegation to the IAEA, said the "resolution is politically motivated since it is not based on any legal or technical grounds" and announced Teheran's defiant response.
Iran also said that it would no longer consider an offer from its old ally Moscow to enrich uranium on its behalf on Russian soil.
America, which has spent the past two years pushing for Iran to be referred to the Security Council, welcomed the UN resolution. "It sends Iran a very clear and unmistakeable message that they need to abide by their international obligations and to heed the call of the international community," said Sean McCormack, the State Department spokesman.
But Iran's conviction that it can win its game of nuclear brinkmanship by exploiting divisions in the international community will have been bolstered by the diplomatic haggling in Vienna. The vote went through after a last minute compromise by the US, which dropped its opposition to the inclusion of wording backing a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East. Washington had seen this as a jibe at Israel's undeclared atomic bomb programme.
Western diplomats were also forced to assure Russia, China and prominent developing nations such as India that sending Iran's case to the Security Council did not mean that sanctions against the Islamic republic were an automatic next step.
The resolution was backed by 27 countries on the 35-member board, including Russia and China. Five abstained and the only dissenting voices were Syria, Cuba and Venezuela.
Iran has been given until a further IAEA meeting next month to comply with its previous accords before the Security Council steps in. The crisis deepened last month when Teheran broke IAEA seals at its Natanz uranium enrichment plant and resumed research there.
The Islamic regime claims that the nuclear programme that it kept secret for 18 years is only intended for civilian energy generation.
Concerns about a military confrontation were fuelled by reports yesterday that Iran had secretly tested a new surface-to-surface missile last month to establish the measurements needed for long-range missiles that could carry nuclear warheads. The German newspaper Die Welt reported that the tests were successful.
They were conducted by members of the Revolutionary Guard led by Yahya Rahim. "Iran has a ballistic missile with a range of 2,000 kilometres," he said. "We do not intend to attack any country, but if attacked, we are capable of effectively responding."
The leader of the Iranian exile group that first alerted the world to the secret nuclear programme said information from inside the country indicated that Teheran was much closer to making an atomic bomb than previously believed.
Maryam Rajavi, who heads the National Council of Resistance of Iran, urged Western governments to stop appeasing Teheran in order to prevent the regime acquiring nuclear weapons.
"Eighteen years of secrecy, three-plus years of man-oeuvering by the US, Europe and Russia have seriously imperilled the security of the world," she told the Sunday Telegraph at the group's headquarters at Auvers-sur-Oise, west of Paris. "Time has run out. I warn that either the Security Council acts quickly or the mullahs will have the bomb."
Mrs Rajavi called on the West to implement political and economic sanctions, which she said would boost democratic resistance to the regime.
Iran's best option would be to "open source" its nuclear program and put all details of its nuclear technology and operations up on the Intenet.
Probably everyone on earth thinks so at this point.
it's kinda like chess-still in mid-game, unfortunately; betting money indicates no blood for many weeks, at least.
Thanks to AQ Khan...when is he going to be executed?
Iran is begging to be attacked so the WMD in Syria may be unleashed. My bet is any preemption will take place in Syria.
Do it before it's too late.
Talk won't save us.
Bunker-busting bombs will.
because this isn't going to be some 72 hour war. alot of the nuclear infrastructure is going to be impenetrable to conventional attack. and if we attack iran, its going to spill over into iraq in a big way - just at the point when iraq is turning the corner significantly. and when silkworm missiles start hitting supertankers in the gulf, and oil goes to $150/bbl, you'll have public support for this effort in the 20s.
Khan will be executed on the 12th of Never. He's still held in high regard by the majority of his countrymen. Musharraf would find himself overthrown in short order.
Khan was just a bagman for China. the nuclear programs of north korea and pakistan, came from china.
No shortage of enemies. They are helping each other against us and they are everywhere.
The Iranian mullahs are banking on an attack on Iran. They need it to get WW III started. An attack against Iran will be billed as an attack against Islam. They believe that all the world's Islamic nations will join them against the infidels. We are dealing with an 11th century mentality. If it occurs, many on both sides will die fighting for God (the true one or the false one depends on which side you are on.) Its the Iranian mullahs and their followers that must be removed from power. Not an easy thing to do. Its like trying to take out Hitler or Stalin in 1939. The rulers control the army and the weapons.
Iran has been coming up a lot lately. Like I said to my employer two days ago: Iran will have to be dealt with very soon. Since Iran is in the news so much, lately, tells me that we are being prepared for something. I wonder who will take the leadership.
There is no doubt in my mind who will take the leadership. However, as usual, they will be chastised for it. Thank God, we still have leaders in this world, because these rag heads are getting out of hand.
The W.S.Journal has a excellent editorial (opinionjournal.com 2/3) on what the world would be like with a nuclear Iran. I don't think most people realize that the president of Iran is the cultural and mental equivalent of UBL. As Benjamen Natanyahou pointed out, during the Cold War the Soviets (despite their irrational ideology) generally behaved rationally when confronted by MAD. But in Iran's case the leadership is irrational and apocalyptic. Just consider what scenario he presented in a hypothetical (and insane) attack on Israel: yes, Iran might lose a few hundred thousand but Israel would be totally obliterated. One must understand that we are dealing with fanatical mullahs who - far from fearing - would welcome death in a jihad that brings martyrdom and immortality. Can we imagine binLaden with his finger on the button? This is NOT hyperbole. It's the most serious danger facing the civilized world.
The W.S.Journal has a excellent editorial (opinionjournal.com 2/3) on what the world would be like with a nuclear Iran. I don't think most people realize that the president of Iran is the cultural and mental equivalent of UBL. As Benjamen Natanyahou pointed out, during the Cold War the Soviets (despite their irrational ideology) generally behaved rationally when confronted by MAD. But in Iran's case the leadership is irrational and apocalyptic. Just consider what scenario he presented in a hypothetical (and insane) attack on Israel: yes, Iran might lose a few hundred thousand but Israel would be totally obliterated. One must understand that we are dealing with fanatical mullahs who - far from fearing - would welcome death in a jihad that brings martyrdom and immortality. Can we imagine binLaden with his finger on the button? This is NOT hyperbole. It's the most serious danger facing the civilized world.
"... we are dealing with fanatical mullahs who - far from fearing - would welcome death in a jihad that brings martyrdom and immortality."
Yup, and perhaps them folks need to be assisted so that both sides can be happy right away.
I like this burn every bridge brinksmanship from Tehran, it makes it SOOO much easier to get Russia and China to go along with us in the Security Council.
As McCain put it, the only thing worse than war with Iran is a nuclear Iran. The Iranians are hoping they can hold out until March, at which point we'll discuss the possibility of having meetings to work toward a decision on whether or not to issue a strongly worded denunciation, as lgf put it.
Militarily our airforce can do whatever it wants to Iran; things getting mucked up among Shi'ites in Iraq is the cost. (This could be an advantage -- we may have the opportunity to put down Al-Sadr for good.)
And don't expect the world to stand and cheer when "Cowboy" Bush launches another "unecessary" preemptive war. Half of America and most of the world will condemn any "preemptive" strike, if the result is a global oil crisis leading to a systemic financial meltdown.
We may have to do it, but please, DON'T think it will be a quick, glorious, high tech victory.
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