Iran Resumes Nuclear Processing

JONATHAN MILLER:

Deep in these tunnels where for nearly two decades Iran hid its nuclear program, its scientists today resumed the research to uranium enrichment.

MOHAMMED SAEEDI, Iranian Atomic Energy Organization (Translated):

Our research work is not limited to one place. We will carry out the research in all the centers that we have already announced to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

JONATHAN MILLER:

His delivery's relaxed enough but this is a big political risk, calculated to raise the stakes, guaranteed to rile a world mistrustful of Tehran's atomic intentions.

The lurking suspicion that the country's whose president wants to wipe Israel from the map also wants an atomic bomb.

SCOTT McCLELLAN:

There is serious concern throughout the international community about the regime's behavior, and given Iran's history of concealing and hiding their nuclear activities from the international community and its continued noncompliance of its safeguard obligations such concern is well founded.

JACK STRAW:

I think the speculation…

JONATHAN MILLER:

In the House of Commons today, the foreign secretary said he hoped they'd pull back. Just last week the Guardian newspaper cited a leak to European intelligence document which concluded that Iran had been shopping in Europe for nuclear bomb-making equipment and ballistic missile components.

JACK STRAW:

This creates a serious situation for the international community. President Chirac has said this is a serious error by Iran. It's one that we internationally have to consider.

JONATHAN MILLER:

Now that enrichment research has resumed here in Natanz, 200 kilometers south of Tehran, the foreign ministers of Britain, France and Germany — the EU-3 — along with the EU's foreign policy chief who have long sought to negotiate a nuclear climb down will meet on Thursday to work out just how to stop Tehran in its tracks. Washington's preferred option? To refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council.

Now even Russia, a key ally of Tehran, urging Iran to keep its promises. Iran has a record of tempering conciliatory gestures with provocative moves.

Three-and-a-half years ago an exiled Iranian opposition group revealed the existence of the secret underground enrichment plant in Natanz. Within four months Washington was accusing Tehran of across-the-board pursuit of weapons of mass destruction.

Next, the U.N. entered the fray, accusing Tehran of breaching the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. Iran promised the EU-3 it would suspend enrichment and then a year later, it promised to suspend the processing of raw uranium, too.

But last September the U.N.'s atomic energy agency announced Iran had resumed the first stage of nuclear processing, breaking the seal at the Isfahan plant. Today research on stage two resumed: Uranium enrichment.