Putin says no nukes in Iran.

[CCTAU 3,332]

Since Russia is making money off building the nuke power plants there, does that mean that Iran is not capable of doing their own research. If history tells us anything (see N. Korea) then its to believe what we feel is happening.

Putin: Iran Does Not Intend to Build Nuclear Arms

Fri Feb 18, 7:50 AM ET  World - Reuters

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin (news - web sites) said on Friday he was convinced Iran was not trying to build a nuclear weapon and that Russia would press ahead with nuclear cooperation with the Islamic Republic.

Reuters Photo

 

Putin's defense of Iran, where Russia is building a nuclear power plant, comes in the face of U.S. concerns that Tehran could be using Russian know-how to covertly build a nuclear weapon.

"The latest steps by Iran convince Russia that Iran indeed does not intend to produce nuclear weapons and we will continue to develop relations in all sectors, including peaceful atomic energy," Putin told Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Hassan Rohani.

"We hope Iran will strictly stick to all agreements with Russia or the international community," Putin said at the start of talks with Rohani at the Kremlin.

The United States has criticized Moscow for pressing ahead with construction of a 1,000-megawatt reactor at Bushehr in southern Iran.

Russia's top nuclear officials are due to travel to Iran next week to finalize the final technicalities of its start-up later this year.

The question of Russia's nuclear ties with Iran is certain to figure in a summit between Putin and President Bush (news - web sites) in the Slovak capital Bratislava on Feb. 24.

Bush said Thursday he would use diplomacy to convince Iran it would be unacceptable to develop nuclear weapons. He said he would use his trip next week to Europe to develop "joint" strategies to deal with Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

Iran has denied it seeks nuclear weapons and says it wants atomic technology solely to generate electricity.

Rohani, addressing Putin, said Moscow could play a significant role in Iran's talks with Britain, France and Germany -- the EU states taking the lead in the search for a diplomatic solution.

"We think that Russia's role can be useful in this process," he said.

"Under current international circumstances ... development of ties with Russia is in the interests of both our countries and will be a factor of stability in the region," he said.

Linky Dinky

[Tigermike 3,039]

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin (news - web sites) said on Friday he was convinced Iran was not trying to build a nuclear weapon and that Russia would press ahead with nuclear cooperation with the Islamic Republic.

The first sentence tells me several things. Putin either believes the Iranians or he is blowing smoke to cover up the Ruskies helping the Iranians and Russia badly needs the money from the contracts with Iran.

[Auburn85 432]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7038240/

News   

   

 

washingtonpost.com Highlights

Iran was offered nuclear parts

Secret meeting in 1987 may have begun programBy Dafna Linzer

Updated: 8:52 a.m. ET Feb. 27, 2005WASHINGTON - International investigators have uncovered evidence of a secret meeting 18 years ago between Iranian officials and associates of Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan that resulted in a written offer to supply Tehran with the makings of a nuclear weapons program, foreign diplomats and U.S. officials familiar with the new findings said.

The meeting, believed to have taken place in a dusty Dubai office in 1987, kick-started Tehran's nuclear efforts and Khan's black market. Iran, which was at war with Iraq then, bought centrifuge designs and a starter kit for uranium enrichment. But Tehran recently told the International Atomic Energy Agency that it turned down the chance to buy the more sensitive equipment required for building the core of a bomb.

There is evidence, however, that Iran used the offer as a buyer's guide, acquiring some of the pricier items elsewhere, officials said.

 

• Iran, Russia delay signing nuke fuel deal

• Briton indicted for violatiion of Iranian embargo

• Iran mourns victims of deadly quake

"The offer is the strongest indication to date that Iran had a nuclear weapons program, but it doesn't prove it completely," said one Western diplomat who is familiar with the details of the offer and would comment on the investigation only on the condition of anonymity. Much of the equipment that Iran obtained can be used for peaceful purposes and is scattered throughout Iran's energy program.

Iran insists that its nuclear activities are aimed at producing nuclear energy, and IAEA inspectors have not found any weapons program underway now. The Bush administration charges that Iran is using the energy program as a cover for a secret effort to build nuclear weapons.

Although the latest discoveries shed no light on Iran's current activities, diplomats believe they provide the most significant public information to date regarding Tehran's interest over the years in nuclear weapons technology and its possible intentions. The White House often focuses on those two areas when trying to explain why Iran should face greater international pressure.

After prodding by the IAEA, Iran turned over a copy of the offer last month. Its contents, along with details of the Dubai meeting, were substantiated in interviews conducted by the agency in recent months, according to diplomats who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the investigation.

The information comes as the IAEA's probe of Iran's nuclear program enters its third year. Tomorrow, the IAEA's 35-member board will meet in Vienna, as it does every three months, to discuss Iran's case and the agency's latest lines of inquiry.

The Bush administration has tried unsuccessfully at board meetings to persuade members to send Iran's case to the U.N. Security Council, which has the authority to impose sanctions or an oil embargo.

A stronger case?

Some U.S. officials familiar with limited details of the new intelligence believe it could strengthen the case for U.N. referral. But the new information is unlikely to sway Britain, France and Germany from a negotiating path they began with Iran in November. European diplomats, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that although the new information reinforces suspicions, it is not enough to take the issue to the Security Council -- a move that would likely end their process with Iran.

Since November, Iran's uranium enrichment facilities, which could be used to make the key ingredient for a bomb, have been shut down and are under constant IAEA monitoring as part of Tehran's deal with the three European powers. Iranian officials have said the suspension will continue as long as there is progress in negotiations.

For Europe, the deal is meant to avert a crisis over Iran's nuclear program by finding diplomatic, rather than military, options. President Bush indicated during a trip to Europe last week that he would be willing to consider ways to assist the diplomatic process, although some of his top aides have long expressed concern that such a move would only strengthen Iran's clerical government.

Over the last two years, the IAEA has uncovered an 18-year-old nuclear program, which the Iranians began in secret and in violation of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. But because much of the equipment can be used for energy development and there is no evidence of past weapons work, the violations are technical and based on Iran's not reporting the program.

[TexasTiger 12,961]

Since Russia is making money off building the nuke power plants there, does that mean that Iran is not capable of doing their own research. If history tells us anything (see N. Korea) then its to believe what we feel is happening.

Putin: Iran Does Not Intend to Build Nuclear Arms

Fri Feb 18, 7:50 AM ET   World - Reuters

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin (news - web sites) said on Friday he was convinced Iran was not trying to build a nuclear weapon and that Russia would press ahead with nuclear cooperation with the Islamic Republic.

Reuters Photo

  

Putin's defense of Iran, where Russia is building a nuclear power plant, comes in the face of U.S. concerns that Tehran could be using Russian know-how to covertly build a nuclear weapon.

"The latest steps by Iran convince Russia that Iran indeed does not intend to produce nuclear weapons and we will continue to develop relations in all sectors, including peaceful atomic energy," Putin told Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Hassan Rohani.

"We hope Iran will strictly stick to all agreements with Russia or the international community," Putin said at the start of talks with Rohani at the Kremlin.

The United States has criticized Moscow for pressing ahead with construction of a 1,000-megawatt reactor at Bushehr in southern Iran.

Russia's top nuclear officials are due to travel to Iran next week to finalize the final technicalities of its start-up later this year.

The question of Russia's nuclear ties with Iran is certain to figure in a summit between Putin and President Bush (news - web sites) in the Slovak capital Bratislava on Feb. 24.

Bush said Thursday he would use diplomacy to convince Iran it would be unacceptable to develop nuclear weapons. He said he would use his trip next week to Europe to develop "joint" strategies to deal with Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

Iran has denied it seeks nuclear weapons and says it wants atomic technology solely to generate electricity.

Rohani, addressing Putin, said Moscow could play a significant role in Iran's talks with Britain, France and Germany -- the EU states taking the lead in the search for a diplomatic solution.

"We think that Russia's role can be useful in this process," he said.

"Under current international circumstances ... development of ties with Russia is in the interests of both our countries and will be a factor of stability in the region," he said.

Linky Dinky

147329[/snapback]

Don't worry. Bush used his magical powers and looked into Putin's soul. He said everything checked out.

At their news conference in Slovenia, Mr. Bush said of Mr. Putin: ``I looked the man in the eye. I found him to be very straightforward and trustworthy. We had a very good dialogue. I was able to get a sense of his soul.''

Senator Biden said that for his part, ``I don't trust Mr. Putin; hopefully the president was being stylistic rather than substantive.''

http://www.ncsj.org/AuxPages/061801Times.shtml

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Now you get it. If you would just come on over to the light side, all that evil in your heart would just dissappear.