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America's Intelligence Denial on Iran

(Wall Street Journal) Fred Fleitz - Mounting evidence over the last few years has convinced most experts that Iran has an active program to develop and construct nuclear weapons. Amazingly, however, these experts do not include the leaders of the U.S. intelligence community. They are unwilling to conduct a proper assessment of the Iranian nuclear issue. As of today, Iran has over 4,000 kilograms of low-enriched uranium - enough, according to the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control, for four nuclear weapons if enriched to weapons grade. Iran has accelerated its production of low-enriched uranium in defiance of UN and IAEA resolutions. It has also announced plans to install advanced centrifuge machines in a facility built deep inside a mountain near Qom. According to several U.S. diplomats and experts, the facility is too small to be part of a peaceful nuclear program and appears specially constructed to enrich uranium to weapons grade. To top this off, an item recently posted to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps website mused about the day after an Iranian nuclear test. That message marked the first time any official Iranian comment suggested the country's nuclear program is not entirely peaceful. It is unacceptable that Iran is on the brink of testing a nuclear weapon while our intelligence analysts continue to deny that an Iranian nuclear weapons program exists. The writer retired this year after a 25-year career at the CIA, DIA, State Department and House Intelligence Committee staff.
2011-07-20 00:00:00
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