Posted on 08/10/2004 4:56:49 PM PDT by Clive
Iran has issued an extraordinary list of demands to Britain and other European countries, telling them to provide advanced nuclear technology, conventional weapons and a security guarantee against nuclear attack by Israel.
Teheran's request, said by British officials to have "gone down very badly", sharply raises the stakes in the crisis over Iran's nuclear programme, which Britain and America believe is aimed at making an atomic bomb.
Iran's move came during crisis talks in Paris this month with senior diplomats from Britain, France and Germany.
The "EU-3" were trying to convince Iranian officials to honour an earlier deal to suspend its controversial uranium enrichment programme, which is ostensibly designed to make fuel for nuclear power stations but could also be used to make fissile material for nuclear bombs. Iranian officials refused point-blank to comply, saying they had every right under international law to pursue "peaceful" nuclear technology.
They then stunned the Europeans by presenting a letter setting out their own demands.
Iran said the EU-3 should support Iran's quest for "advanced (nuclear) technology, including those with dual use" - a reference to equipment that has both civilian and military applications.
The Europeans should "remove impediments" preventing Iran from having such technology, and stick to these commitments even if faced with "legal (or) political . . . limitations", an allusion to American pressure or even future international sanctions against Iran.
More astonishingly, Iran said the EU-3 should agree to meet Iran's requirements for conventional weapons and even "provide security assurances" against a nuclear attack on Iran.
This is a reference to Israel's nuclear arsenal, believed to include some 200 warheads and long-range missiles to deliver them.
The EU-3 are still debating over how to respond, but British officials said the Iranian letter was "extremely surprising, given the delicate state of process". Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, will have to decide whether to adopt a more confrontational policy.
America is demanding that the board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which meets next month, refer Iran to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions. US officials are also openly discussing "covert" means of disrupting the Iranian nuclear programme, while Israel has openly threatened military action.
However, there were signs yesterday that the next report of Mohammed ElBaradei, the IAEA director general, may give Iran a boost.
A key mystery for the past year has been the source of traces of highly-enriched uranium (HEU) found by IAEA inspectors at several sites in Iran. Teheran claimed this was "contamination" of equipment imported from other countries, rather than proof that it had secretly made HEU.
According to diplomats, inspectors have confirmed that in at least one case the contamination did come from Pakistan, as Iran claimed.
Other contamination issues remain unresolved, and may never be settled. Moreover there are several other open questions.
To Iran: Surrender now or one city will be vaporized every 12 hours. Starting NOW. {note to china...don't even think about it or we'll do all of yours at once}
Make that "I'll have the USS Jimmy Carter launch the Cruise Missiles...
I agree. I was listening to Senator Coleman on Mpls talk radio today(IIRC, he's on the foreign relations committee). I believe he just returned from Israel and was commenting on Labor, Likud and the various factions all being in agreement about Iran.
laughing my ass off...
that was funny.
a sense of irony and cruel humor in less than two dozen words.
The words of Adolf Hitler, in his 'Barbarossa' Proclamation.
These Islamic Satan-worshipers need to be taken out, period. As far as promoting terrorism and actual concrete acts of destabilization, the Islamic Satan-worshipers that run Iran against the will of the overwhelming majority of its people are FAR more guilty than Sodam Insane was. True, he is a genocidal murderer who killed millions, but the Ayatollahs have shown no desire to stop their terrorist activities, which far outstrip any terror support Saddam was ever able to provide (not that he didn't want to do more). And since the war we are fighting is a War on TERROR, the leadership of Iran is a prime target for destruction. My friends, we should all expect to be at war for the next 10 years because there is no way that we are ever going to reason with these bastards or make them see the evil of their ways. These wicked men are going to their destruction and we MUST finish the job. I personally agree that it must be done NOW (like Del Toro says in Traffic).
I personally believe the Iraq war is the perfect step to allowing us to win this war because now it's just us and the Ayatollahs. This smartmouthed bunch of Islamotrash is about to be sent to Judgement. And I tell you this: When they get there they'll say, "But Lord, did we not commit murder against infidels in your name?" And the Lord will say "Shall I dignify that with a response?"
Think of the after effects of removing the cancer that is the Guardian Council. Hezbollah and Hamas die on the vine, lacking a benfactor. Syria craps its pants and FINALLY realized that we really really really really do mean business. And Korea...well...they'll still be insane retards.
My personal opinion is that in the overall campaign against terror, the Guardian Council is a much more important target that Osama Bin Laden, as they are essentially Bin Laden with billions of dollars to provide to every Islamic demon that slithers out of hell.
Provide them with advanced nuclear technology? I thought they'd never ask!
5
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Nuclear technology on the way.
Enjoy.
I have, but if we weren't so hamstrung by PC, we'd have used full force and they'd all be dirtnapping last week. And fat-boy Sadr would be pig feed two weeks ago. Cease-fires and truces have no place in the WOT; killing as many of the Muslim murderers/terrorists, is all that counts.
President Announces New Measures to Counter the Threat of WMD February 11, 2004
PRESIDENT BUSH:
To Iraq's east, the government of Iran is unwilling to abandon a uranium enrichment program capable of producing material for nuclear weapons. The United States is working with our allies and the International Atomic Energy Agency to ensure that Iran meets its commitments and does not develop nuclear weapons.................snip
So today, as a fourth step, I propose a way to close the loophole. The world must create a safe, orderly system to field civilian nuclear plants without adding to the danger of weapons proliferation. The world's leading nuclear exporters should ensure that states have reliable access at reasonable cost to fuel for civilian reactors, so long as those states renounce enrichment and reprocessing. Enrichment and reprocessing are not necessary for nations seeking to harness nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
The 40 nations of the Nuclear Suppliers Group should refuse to sell enrichment and reprocessing equipment and technologies to any state that does not already possess full-scale, functioning enrichment and reprocessing plants. This step will prevent new states from developing the means to produce fissile material for nuclear bombs. Proliferators must not be allowed to cynically manipulate the NPT to acquire the material and infrastructure necessary for manufacturing illegal weapons.
For example, the CANDU6 and CANDU9 reactors low temperature, heavy water moderated, unenriched uranium reactors and are available effectively of-the-shelf with no need for the buyer to develop enrichment facilities.
Additionally, the CANDU9 is being used now to help dispose of weapons grade plutomium as it is capable of using rods made of unenriched uranium or pu-MOX which is made from weapons grade uranium.
My point is that if some nation that does not have sufficent access to the necessary fuel for conventional power plants (California comes to mind) and wants to use nuclear generation, it can do so by buying a CANDU9 and using unenriched uranium and heavy water supplied by the vendor. It can also help get rid of the plutinium left over from nuclear disengagement programs by purchasing pu-MOX rods from the vendor's processing facilities or from the US under suitable safeguards.
So any claim by Iran that enrichment facilities are necesary to enable it to develop nuclear generating capacity is a total crock.
Iran drank the same Kool Aid as the EU and the media has.
They fully believe that Bush will be defeated in November and are doing this to brag.
Everyone will be in for a rude awakening on November 3, when Bush wins. People actually think that this administration is going to play patty cake like the previous admin.
This is dangerous.
Mullahs know EU 3 will take their pants off and defecate on orders.
Wait, but I thought "soft diplomacy" worked better than threats and use of force?
It's so sophisticated, and European, how could it possibly fail?
However, it does show that they fear Israel, and that's a good thing.
For years we worried about the Soviets doing a "Findlandization" on the rest of Europe.
The Iranians are doing just that, if you read the signal.
They want Europe actively engaged against Israel.
There's always a possiblity that something is now "in stock".
Nuclear "deep weapons" approved in 2001 Defense Authorization Bill
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