Inspectors uncover new nuclear experiments in Iran
UN inspectors have uncovered nuclear experiments not previously disclosed by Iran, diplomats said today, characterising the discovery as more potential evidence of Tehran’s alleged weapons ambitions.
The diplomats, who are familiar with the International Atomic Energy Agency’s efforts to lay bare Iran’s shadowy nuclear programme, said the inspectors found signs of polonium, a radioactive element that can help trigger a nuclear chain reaction.
Iran’s apparent production of and experimentation with the metallic substance was expected to be detailed in a report being circulated this week to the IAEA’s 35 nation board of governors, which meets early next month in Vienna to reassess Iran’s nuclear threat.
Polonium also can be used to generate electricity, and Iran has insisted all along that its nuclear programmes are peaceful and geared only toward producing power.
But the United States and several other countries contend that the Tehran regime is bent on making atomic arms, and one diplomat said the polonium discovery could be another sign of its alleged drive to gain weapons capabilities.
“It’s not the smoking gun, but it’s one of the links,” the diplomat said.
Iran did not immediately react to the polonium discovery, which was first reported by The Washington Post. Officials at IAEA headquarters in Vienna declined to comment.
More significant, the diplomats said, is the discovery earlier this month by agency inspectors in Iran of an advanced centrifuge system that can enrich uranium for weapons use. The White House has said the finding raised ”serious concerns” about Iran’s intentions.
State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said last night that Washington was concerned that Iran continues to withhold information on its past and present nuclear activities despite the IAEA’s insistence that it come clean.
“They have divulged some parts of that programme, but they still have a long way to go. And it’s not clear to us at this point that Iran has made a strategic decision to abandon its efforts at nuclear weapons production,” Boucher said.
