Posted on 05/26/2012 9:25:15 AM PDT by Olog-hai
Iran has significantly stepped up its output of low-enriched uranium and total production in the last five years would be enough for at least five nuclear weapons if refined much further, a U.S. security institute said.
The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), a think-tank which tracks Iran's nuclear program closely, based the analysis on data in the latest report by the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) which was issued on Friday.
Progress in Iran's nuclear activities is closely watched by the West and Israel as it could determine how long it could take Tehran to build atomic bombs, if it decided to do so. Iran denies any plan to and says its aims are entirely peaceful.
During talks in Baghdad this week, six world powers failed to convince Iran to scale back its uranium enrichment program. They will meet again in Moscow next month to try to defuse a decade-old standoff that has raised fears of a new war in the Middle East that could disrupt oil supplies.
Friday's report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a Vienna-based U.N. body, showed Iran was pressing ahead with its uranium enrichment work in defiance of U.N. resolutions calling on it to suspend the activity.
It said Iran had produced almost 6.2 tons of uranium enriched to a level of 3.5 percent since it began the work in 2007—some of which has subsequently been further processed into higher-grade material.
This is nearly 750 kg more than in the previous IAEA report issued in February, and ISIS said Iran's monthly production had risen by roughly a third.
"This total amount of 3.5 percent low enriched uranium hexafluoride, if further enriched to weapon grade, is enough to make over five nuclear weapons," ISIS said in its analysis. …
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Last time I looked, Israel is estimated to have over 200...who’s the winner here?
All about the intended use. One used in a terror attack is something the world has never seen before.
True. But one used anywhere near the Israelis will result in significantly less Muslims born to be terrorists.
Since we can’t, or won’t, do anything, how long before Israel acts? Will they wait and see if Romney wins? And if obama wins will they act the next day?
islam.
Ever tried putting up dry wall or ceramic tiling? Both looked easy to me. The final product was, well, less than satisfactory.
Multiply that times the National Debt and you are in the ball park of the degree of difficulty of making a fission bomb.
It’s all about location and yield. Add determiniation.
That’s the last thing the Mullahs would be worried about, I think. Just more martyrs for the cause, just like on 9/11.
Is anyone suprised? The entire world including the Obama administration knew that the Iranians had always fully intended to possess nuclear weapons or have the capability to quickly assemle them. For reasons well documented, this is an intolerale situation for Israel and even places the United States in danger. However for Mr. Obama, he will allow nothing that may threaten his reelection. Definitive action by Israel and/or the United States could adversly affect his campaign if the actions are inconclusive or the Americans lose ships and suffer significant casualities. Hence the Iranians know they have a free hand until November. The big question is will it be too late to stop them after November?
It’s the “nuclear umbrella” principle, ultimately. Besides, even dirty bombs would be satisfactory to Hezbollah and Hamas.
Tel Aviv, Haifa, NYC, Washington DC and Hollywood?
With six you get Miami...
1, 10 a dozen or scores are martyrs, a billion is another matter.
Yeah. We did it with slide rules and non-automated machine tools.
And we didn’t even know if it could even be done when we started.
Ping.
We will find
sooner or later
if Achmed'll pray
to a glowing crater...
I’m more for “nuke it until it’s glass, and then hope they break their necks when they slip on it”
“difficulty of making a fission bomb”
What makes you think they need to?
Joseph Stalin: "One death is a tragedy; a million is a statistic>'
Thanx.
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