"Iran continues to defy the international community and further isolate itself by expanding its nuclear program, rather than suspending uranium enrichment," said Gordon Johndroe, a spokesman for the National Security Council.
The Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, had no immediate comment on Monday's announcement.
The United Nations has vowed to ratchet up sanctions as long as Iran refuses to suspend enrichment. The Security Council first imposed limited sanctions in December, then increased them slightly last month and has set a new deadline of late May.
"What we are looking for are reasonable Iranian leaders who view the cost-benefit calculation and see that it is not to the benefit of the Iranian people to continue to pursue the course on which they find themselves," McCormack said.
Michael Levi, a fellow for science and technology at the Council on Foreign Relations, was skeptical of the Iranian claims. He said by his calculations, the capabilities Iran has just announced would provide 10 percent of the material needed to run its plant.
"To me, that's not industrial scale," Levi said. "An industrial-scale facility is a facility that can support your industry."
On the other hand, "from a political perspective, it's more important to have them in place than to have them run properly," he explained since the announcement stirs up support and patriotism at home, and the international community has almost no way to verify how well the program is working.
"Iran looks to be moving its nuclear program along on a political schedule rather than a technical schedule," Levi said.
Levi marveled that Iran has the power to cause such a stir with an announcement. He noted that most of the time, world leaders complain they can't trust Iran, "except when they say something really scary, we take them at their word."
In his speech, Ahmadinejad insisted Iran has been cooperative with the U.N. nuclear watchdog, allowing it inspections of its facilities, but he warned, "Don't do something that will make this great nation reconsider its policies" in a reference to the threat of increased U.N. sanctions.
"With great honor, I declare that as of today our dear country has joined the nuclear club of nations and can produce nuclear fuel on an industrial scale," Ahmadinejad said.
Larijani said his country was willing to offer assurances that its program is peaceful. But he said the West must accept its nuclear program as a fact: "We do not give in our rights."
On April 9, 2006, Iran announced it had first enriched uranium using an array of 164 centrifuges.
Across Iran, school bells rang on Monday to mark the "national day of nuclear energy." The government sent out text messages of congratulations for the occasion to millions of mobile phone users.
In Tehran, some 200 students formed a human chain at Iran's Atomic Energy Organization while chanting "death to America" and "death to Britain." The students burnt flags of the U.S. and Britain.
Experts say the Natanz plant needs between 50,000 to 60,000 centrifuges to consistently produce fuel for a reactor or build a warhead.
In the enrichment process, uranium gas is pumped into a "cascade" of thousands of centrifuges, which spin the gas at supersonic speeds to purify it. Uranium enriched to a low level, at least 3 percent, can be used as fuel, while at a far higher level, more than 90 percent, it can be used to build a weapon.
Also Monday, Iranian state television reported that an Iranian Revolutionary Guard general who is under travel restrictions urged by the sanctions visited Russia without any difficulty.
Gen. Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr, who is also deputy interior minister for security affairs, was quoted on the state TV Web site as saying that his six-day journey to Moscow, which ended Monday, showed "the ineffectiveness of the resolution."
The resolution urges all governments to ban visits by the 15 individuals and says that should such visits occur — presumably for exceptional circumstances — the countries should notify a U.N. committee.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Krivtsov confirmed that Zolqadr visited Russia. He told The Associated Press that the resolution does not prohibit visits by the listed individuals, but calls for heightened vigilance "directed first of all at people who are directly related to nuclear programs" — suggesting that Zolqadr was not.
Tensions are also high between Iran and the West following the 13-day detention of 15 British sailors by Iran. The sailors, who were seized by Revolutionary Guards off the Iraqi coast, were released on Wednesday, but since then have said they were put under psychological pressure by their captors to force them to "confess" to being in Iranian waters when captured, angering many in Britain.
From Yahoo News:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070409/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iran_nuclearWhat should we say?
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Talking about myself.
Now,it's raining.Could i see the rainbow after it?
Ok,you know my name is Rainbow.I was born in January.It's winter,but that day has a rainbow in HangZhou where i was born.Is it romantic?Winter,Raibow and HangZhou.Maybe there's a beauty else,haha~That's the reason i named Rainbow.
Even though i grew up in Hangzhou few days,i always think myself have characteristics of Hangzhou people.So i belong to there i think.My grandparents said they miss me very very much,and me too.
During i in Guangzhou,i met many people.They treated me nice especilly Yanzhan!I appreciate they much!From this summer vacation,i will go back HZ frequently.I have to live there sooner or later.......
When i was 16,i like a silly girl.At that time,everything is pure in my mind.But now i am an adult,i'm 18!I could treat everything in mellowed ways. ............Have no more words to say,haha,time is up.To be continued next times,bye~
