Blix Says Iran Could Develop Nuclear Weapons
May 13, 2004
The Associated Press
STOCKHOLM -- Former chief U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix said Thursday that it wasn't unreasonable to think that Iran could develop a nuclear weapon within two years.
The former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, made the assessment in an interview Thursday with Swedish public radio, which had cited an anonymous official in Iran as saying that secret experiments were being conducted in underground laboratories in the country.
The man, interviewed by phone from Iran, suggested the experiments were linked to advanced centrifuges Iran had developed to enrich uranium - the process that can be used either to develop nuclear fuel or warheads.
Blix said if that is the case, he wasn't surprised.
"It does not sound completely unreasonable," said the former Swedish foreign minister, and ex-chief U.N. weapons inspector who is now head of a newly created Stockholm-based independent commission on weapons of mass destruction. "It depends how far they've come in developing the centrifuges that are needed."
Blix did'nt immediately return messages left by The Associated Press.
Iran said it suspended uranium enrichment last year under international pressure, but continued to make uranium-enriching centrifuge components. In April, the country said it stopped all construction of those centrifuges.
Iran's nuclear program came under international scrutiny last year after the IAEA discovered a covert centrifuge facility at Natanz. First word of the existence of the centrifuges came nearly two years ago.
Since those discoveries, traces of weapons-grade highly enriched uranium and new more advanced centrifuge prototypes and experiments have raised the international community's concerns about Tehran's development of a nuclear weapons program.
"Any information that any country is building a plant for enriching uranium raises questions about the intention," Blix said. "You need uranium enriched up to about 4% for use in a peaceful nuclear power plant."
Blix said it's widely known that Iran has sought to increase its enrichment capabilities.
"At the same time, they say that the intention is not to enrich uranium up to the high percentages needed for making bombs, but that they want to be self-sufficient with fuel for their nuclear plants," he said.
Blix said it would be better if Iran gave up any enrichment program altogether.
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