Nuke row unlikely to end soon

The development of nuclear power by Iran has sparked deep concern among Western countries, especially the United States. The West accuses the Islamic republic of seeking to produce nuclear weapons.

The growing concern over Iran's nuclear activities is attributed to the possibility of developing nuclear weapons under the cover of its civilian nuclear programme.

It is well known that developing nuclear weapons is carried out in three stages, the first of which is producing nuclear fissionable materials during the uranium enrichment process, which Iran still refuses to suspend. The second stage is developing medium and long-range missiles, while the third phase is the production of nuclear warheads.

Iran, however, needs to succeed in these phases to be able to acquire nuclear weapons and join the nuclear club. The West's fears are rational and justified because Iran succeeded in producing heavy water and enriching uranium on an industrial scale, and has set up thousands of units for this purpose since 2006.

Iran has also worked rapidly to develop missile capabilities and increase their range to achieve its nuclear ambitions. The effort toward nuclear warheads was halted by Iran in 2003, according to a US intelligence report in 2007.

The issuance of this report delayed a serious confrontation between the US with Iran, but after the report was published by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on May 26, 2008, the issue has once again returned to the forefront.

Iran's hypothetical research toward manufacturing nuclear warheads and transforming the Shihab-3 missile into a nuclear weapon is another source of concern to the nuclear watchdog.

Diplomats revealed that the United Nations received intelligence information from 10 countries that Iran is involved in studies and engineering activities that may be related to making a nuclear bomb.

Uranium usage

The toughly worded report by the IAEA called on Iran to provide essential information if it wants to convince the international community that its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes. The so-called alleged studies remain a matter of serious concern, the report said.

Iran's first reaction to this report came from the new speaker of parliament Ali Larijani, former nuclear negotiator, who described the agency's attitude as "regrettable" and warned that Tehran would consider revising its cooperation with the nuclear agency.

On November 8, 2007, the agency received from Iran a copy of the 15-page document on the use of uranium in a warhead, which was found by UN inspectors in 2005.

The UN agency asked Iran to explain the reasons behind possessing this document, as well as to provide it with a copy of the document.

Iranian experts said that they got the document by accident in 1987 and was not requested by Iran.

The agency, however, is still waiting for a reply from Pakistan on the circumstances under which the document was sent to Iran. The row over the Iranian nuclear programme is expected to continue escalating, especially with the current US presidential race and the end of US President George Bush's term in office.

In a keynote address at the occupied Jerusalem Conference 2008, held as part of Israel's celebrations of its creation, former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger warned against the danger of Iran to the international community. He said: "Nuclear Iran does not only pose a threat to Israel but to the entire world."

Speaking to an audience of world leaders, Kissinger said that one of the major global shifts today is the rise of fundamentalism and radicalism.

Kissinger added that the Iranian nuclear threat, besides its threat to destroy Israel, would destabilise the whole world, and that it must be addressed internationally.

He urged the international community to seriously tackle the issue of Iran's nuclear programme, warning that more countries will follow suit and develop nuclear weapons if this issue is not addressed.

Dr Mohammad Akef Jamal is an Iraqi writer based in Dubai.