Iran's Nuclear Program
IRLS211
Week 5-6
Iran’s Nuclear Program
“…Look at it in the totality of the picture. And the picture is you 've got undeclared …nuclear activity, deliberate misinformation on nuclear activity, development of delivery systems, and other technical research that, added all up, paints a very troubling picture.” (Ereli, 2004). These remarks, given by J. Adam Ereli, a State Department Deputy Spokesman, sums up the nuclear program and intentions of Iran. Although on multiple occasions Iran declared their nuclear development program is only for peaceful purposes, not for weaponization, the reality is Iran has been systematically and clandestinely developing nuclear technology with the intent of creating nuclear weapons. This paper will give a brief history of Iran’s nuclear program, what Iran’s strategic goals of a nuclear weapon program are, why the Europeans and Americans believe a nuclear Iran will create a crisis situation, and what the response of the international community would be if Iran did develop nuclear weapons.
The US, under the Atoms for Peace Program, gave Iran its first assistance for a civil nuclear program in the 1960’s. According to Akbar Etemad, the President of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) in the 1970’s, by early 1970, Iran was carrying out nuclear research and education at the University of Tehran. The work centered on a five megawatt research reactor supplied by the United States, which began operation in 1967 (Etemad, 1987). Iranian scientists and engineers also conducted research on the nuclear fuel cycle, the exploration of uranium mining and ore processing, and designed plans for a new nuclear research center at Isfahan (Etemad, 1987).
By the mid-1970s, according to Etemad, Iran’s nuclear energy program had expanded, with the goal of producing roughly 23,000 megawatts of electrical power from a series of nuclear power stations within twenty years. Etemad acknowledges, however, that the Iranian revolution in 1979
Week 5-6
Iran’s Nuclear Program
“…Look at it in the totality of the picture. And the picture is you 've got undeclared …nuclear activity, deliberate misinformation on nuclear activity, development of delivery systems, and other technical research that, added all up, paints a very troubling picture.” (Ereli, 2004). These remarks, given by J. Adam Ereli, a State Department Deputy Spokesman, sums up the nuclear program and intentions of Iran. Although on multiple occasions Iran declared their nuclear development program is only for peaceful purposes, not for weaponization, the reality is Iran has been systematically and clandestinely developing nuclear technology with the intent of creating nuclear weapons. This paper will give a brief history of Iran’s nuclear program, what Iran’s strategic goals of a nuclear weapon program are, why the Europeans and Americans believe a nuclear Iran will create a crisis situation, and what the response of the international community would be if Iran did develop nuclear weapons.
The US, under the Atoms for Peace Program, gave Iran its first assistance for a civil nuclear program in the 1960’s. According to Akbar Etemad, the President of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) in the 1970’s, by early 1970, Iran was carrying out nuclear research and education at the University of Tehran. The work centered on a five megawatt research reactor supplied by the United States, which began operation in 1967 (Etemad, 1987). Iranian scientists and engineers also conducted research on the nuclear fuel cycle, the exploration of uranium mining and ore processing, and designed plans for a new nuclear research center at Isfahan (Etemad, 1987).
By the mid-1970s, according to Etemad, Iran’s nuclear energy program had expanded, with the goal of producing roughly 23,000 megawatts of electrical power from a series of nuclear power stations within twenty years. Etemad acknowledges, however, that the Iranian revolution in 1979
Cited: -Akbar Etemad, "Iran. ' A European Non-Proliferation Policy. Ed. Harald Muller. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1987 Constraints and Options, January 25, 2005, p. 11-12, (via Iran Watch): http://www.iranwatch.org/government/US/Congress/CRS/congress-crs-khannetwork-012505.pdf -Daragahi, Borzou, and Ramin Mostaghim -2009 Failed State Index - Interactive map and rankings. Retrieved August 13, 2009, from Foreign Policy Web site: -List of states with nuclear weapons. (2009, September 13). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia Retrieved 17:53, September 11, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nuclear_program_of_Iran&oldid=313225522 -Russell, James A., Regional Threats and Security Strategy – The troubling case of