Intelligence officials: Russia gave Iran nuke tech to save reactor deal
By Steve Rodan, Middle East Newsline
SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM
Tuesday, June 6, 2000
TEL AVIV -- Russia has transferred to Iran technology and components
for the development of nuclear weapons, Israeli and U.S. intelligence
sources said.
The sources said Russia has recently transferred technology and
components for the enrichment of uranium to
produce fissile material needed for nuclear weapons. The technology includes
the capability to produce highly enriched uranium through one of several
methods -- including centrifugal separation.
"I call this the year of decision because Iran is developing nuclear
weapons," Brig. Gen. Amos Gilead, head of military intelligence research
division, said. "Iran is trying to gather resources to develop the nuclear
weapons. If they're not stopped now, in five or seven years, Iran will
deploy nuclear weapons. In strategic terms, seven years is the blink of an
eye."
The sources said the technology is part of a Russian effort to ensure
that Iran does not stop the construction of the civilian nuclear reactor at
Bushehr. They said Iran has determined that a nuclear power plant is
currently economically unfeasible. The Russian contract is estimated at more
than $1 billion while the contract for nuclear weapons technology transfer
is regarded as being that of only tens of millions of dollars.
The transfer of the unspecified Russian technology is being authorized
by the Russian Nuclear Energy Ministry, the sources said. They said minister
Viktor Adamov has led the effort in ensuring that Iran obtains nuclear
weapons capability.
"We are more convinced than at any other time in the past that to
preserve the Bushehr contract, he [Adamov] is ready to ignore and look away
from the transfer of nuclear military technology to Iran," a senior Israeli
intelligence source said.
The U.S. and Israeli sources said Iran will probably maintain Bushehr
under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency, but produce
fissile material at a secret facility. They said a team of Russians
unconnected to Bushehr is working on the nuclear weapons project.
Israel and the United States have discussed the issue in recent
strategic talks. U.S. officials acknowledge the Iranian effort and said
Moscow has made a decision to supply Teheran with nuclear weapons technology
to ensure that Iran does not undermine Russia, which is currently battling
Islamic insurgents in Chechnya.
The issue was discussed in talks between U.S. President Bill Clinton and
his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Moscow on Sunday.
"Russia is opposed to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction,"
said Leon Fuerth, national security adviser to Vice President Al Gore, who
heads a U.S. committee to discuss proliferation issues with Moscow. "It is
the execution that is the problem. Now, we have worked with them
persistently. We have a degree of progress in the area of ballistic missile
technology with things left to be done. We have ongoing and serious concerns
on the nuclear side."
Fuerth told the Washington Institute for Near East Policy on May 15 that
Russia feels it could buy long-term security from Iran through developing
Teheran's intermediate- and long-range ballistic missiles as well as nuclear
weapons. "For that, if you want to call it strategic reason, I think they
have had an interest in making sure that the Iranians felt that Russia would
be sympathetic to their requirements," he said.
On Monday, a conference opened in the Russian city of Krasnoyarsk to
discuss the conversion of weapons-grade plutonium into fuel for nuclear
power stations. The conference is being attended by scientists and
specialists from Russia, Britain, France, India and the United States.
Tuesday, June 6, 2000
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