Excerpts from previous status reports, by subject
Removed on November 12, 2009
Deal on reactor fuel struck in Geneva on October 1
On October 1, 2009 in Geneva, at a meeting with the world’s leading powers, Iran offered a handshake rather than its usual fist when discussing its nuclear program. Embarrassed by the discovery of a uranium enrichment plant that it had been hiding near the city of Qum, Iran agreed “in principle” to send out of the country a portion of its stockpile of enriched uranium, a step that, if taken, would reduce the risk that it could use the stockpile to make a nuclear weapon quickly. The material sent abroad would be processed into research reactor fuel and then returned. The parties at the meeting pledged to meet again before the end of the month, though by mid-November no such meeting had taken place.
U.S. President Barack Obama cautiously hailed Iran’s commitment as “a constructive beginning” that would ease but by no means erase concerns that Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons. Reducing its stockpile of low-enriched uranium by about 1,200 kg before the end of 2009 would temporarily eliminate Iran’s ability to use that uranium to fuel a bomb in a “break out” scenario -- too little would be left behind. However, since Iran continues to produce low-enriched uranium at its Natanz plant and Iran could again accumulate enough of the material to fuel a bomb (after further processing) within about six months.
Further allegations of nuclear weapon work
An Iranian exile group cast further doubt on Iran’s nuclear intentions by announcing on September 24, 2009 that Iran has been researching and attempting to produce detonators for nuclear weapons. According to this group, the Paris-based Mujahedin-e Khalq, Iran is operating two secret sites within a complex known as METFAZ, or the Research Center for Explosion and Impact, which is controlled by the Ministry of Defense. The first site is allegedly focused on computer simulation of devices that could detonate a nuclear weapon; the second is a site used for manufacturing detonator parts.