Iran IRGC cites Obama speech as validating nuclear program Saturday, June 20, 2009
Wednesday, June 10, 2009 E-Mail this story Free Headline Alerts
Geostrategy-Direct.com
The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, the Islamist shock troops in charge of IranÕs nuclear arms program, said last week that the speech by President Obama in Cairo had legitimized the nuclear program.
Qods Online, the Internet site for the IRGC paramilitary unit Qods Force, stated June 8 that Mohammad Kowsari, of the Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, was quoted as saying that ObamaÕs comments about the Iranians having a right to the peaceful use of nuclear power indicate the president Òacknowledged Iran's nuclear right within the framework of the NPT; he must show this in practice."
ÒThe dignified foreign policies of the ninth government forced him to officially acknowledge Iran's nuclear right and asked for negotiations with Iran without preconditions," Kowsari said. ÒObama's presence in the Middle East and in the Islamic countries was because America wanted to support Saudi Arabia and Egypt and also wanted to send a limited verbal signal to Iran."
The International Atomic Energy Agency has said Iran has conducted illegal uranium enrichment outside of established safeguards. Iran has followed the model for another would be nuclear weapons state, North Korea, by first joining the IAEA in order to gain access to nuclear technology and then abandoning the controls imposed by that membership in seeking nuclear weapons.
Meanwhile, another Majilis member, Ahmad Bozorgian, was quoted by TeheranÕs state-run press as saying that the government planned to increase the number of centrifuges used to enrich uranium to 84,000.
Bozorgian said Iran currently has 7,000 centrifuges at its Natanz nuclear facility. ÒAlso, 25,000 centrifuges are in the preliminary phases of installation,Ó he stated. ÒPlanning has also been done for the production of more than 52,000 centrifuges and these centrifuges are now under production inside the country.Ó __ Full Text, Subscribers