(New York Times) William J. Broad - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that his nation would produce a higher grade of nuclear fuel on its own. His declaration continued a daily drumbeat of defiant proclamations from the Iranian leadership, which has vowed to expand its nuclear plants and hone its capability to enrich uranium. "The Iranian nation will produce 20% fuel and anything it needs itself," Ahmadinejad told a cheering crowd in Isfahan. Uranium enriched to 20% can enable Iran to make a crude nuclear weapon. The bigger threat would be that its enrichment could quickly accelerate to 90%, typically used in modern nuclear warheads. A diplomat in Vienna who works with the International Atomic Energy Agency and closely monitors the Iranian program said, "They're almost asking to be attacked....By definition, 20% is weapons-usable."
2009-12-03 08:15:42Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive