Iran Nuclear Watch: Iran Nuclear Chief Gholamreza Aghazadeh – Iran’s Uranium Enrichment Now 4.8 Per Cent
Iranian technicians explains a piece of equipment to a clergyman during an exhibition of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization at the Qom University in the city of Qom 80 miles (130 kilometers) south of the capital Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, May 2, 2006. Iran has discovered new deposits of uranium and is continuing its nuclear enrichment program despite international protests, a top nuclear official said Tuesday.
ASSociated Press: Iran Uranium at Level to Fuel Reactors
Iran’s nuclear chief said Wednesday that Iran has enriched uranium up to 4.8 percent — the upper end of the range needed to make fuel for reactors — as it continues to defy U.S. and European demands to stop enrichment.
The announcement by nuclear chief Gholamreza Aghazadeh tops Iran’s declaration last month that it had surpassed the 3.6 percent purity level. Uranium enriched to between 3.5 and 5 percent is used to make fuel for reactors to generate electricity.Enriched to more than 90 percent, it becomes suitable for use in nuclear weapons. Aghazadeh added that Iran has no intention of enriching uranium beyond 5 percent.
But, this is their public uranium enrichment program. And what about the P-2 centrfuges which enrich uranium at a much higher rate?
This announcement serves notice to the West that time to negotiate with Ahmadinejad and the Mullahs is OVER.
International Atomic Energy Agency officials in Vienna, Austria, said they had no information about the claim. The agency — whose inspection powers have been curtailed in recent months by Iran — said in a report sent to the U.N. Security Council on Friday that Iran’s claim to have enriched small amounts to a level of 3.6 percent appeared to be true according to initial analysis of samples it took.
Wednesday’s announcement, if true, is significant because it shows that Iran continues to enrich uranium in defiance of the Security Council, which asked Tehran last month to cease all such activity because of fears it could be misused to make nuclear arms.
European nations, backed by the United States, outlined a planned Security Council resolution in Paris on Tuesday to give “mandatory force” to the atomic watchdog agency’s demands that Iran halt uranium enrichment.
While the resolution does not call for sanctions, that is likely to be the next step sought by the United States, Britain and France if Iran refuses to stop enriching uranium.
Still, Russia and China, veto-wielding permanent members of the Security Council, remained firmly opposed to a resolution that could pave the way for sanctions if Tehran refuses to end uranium enrichment.
The Security Council is scheduled to discuss the Iran nuclear issue on Wednesday.
And it was announced yesterday that Iran has discovered new uranium deposits.
Aghazadeh also said Wednesday that Iran had discovered uranium deposits in southern Iran near the port city of Bandar Abbas, a day after Iranian officials said they had found uranium ore at three new sites in the center of the country.
Aghazadeh, who is also the head of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said Iran was planning vast investments to extract uranium from its newly discovered deposits.
“Experts at the (Iran’s) Atomic Energy Organization are making plans to identify the country’s uranium reserves. It is predicted that we will have vast investments in various parts of the country,” he said.
More uranium ore, increasing enrichment and all of this is to generate electricity?
Doubtful……
Stay tuned for the United Nations Security Council meeting later today…….
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The Natanz uranium enrichment complex in Natanz is pictured in this January 2, 2006 satellite image.
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