Iran wants to build 10 more enrichment sites (3rd Roundup)

Nov 30, 2009, 0:28 GMT

Tehran - Iran's government on Sunday ordered construction of 10 more uranium enrichment sites, the ISNA news agency reported.

Construction of five of the sites at existing locations should start within the next two months, and suitable locations will be found for the remaining five, in an order handed down to the Iranian atomic agency after Sunday's cabinet session.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in the session that for the generation of 20,000 megawatts of electricity, Iran needed 500,000 centrifuges, preferably new devices with higher speeds.

The government order is based on the fourth Iranian development plan upon which 20,000 megawatts should gradually be added to the country's power stations.

Iran has reportedly started upgrading the technology of its centrifuges by gradually replacing P-1 devices with the faster P-2 models.

The Vienna-based IAEA on Friday adopted a resolution censuring Iran for secretly building a new nuclear enrichment plant at Fordo near the capital, Tehran.

Referring to the IAEA resolution, Ahmadinejad reiterated that Iran would not allow any country to deprive the country of its nuclear rights.

Iran on Sunday repeated its threat to limit cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog in a dispute over nuclear enrichment, the ISNA news agency reported.

'If you do not stop these ridiculous carrot-and-stick policies, we will in return adopt new policies and seriously reduce cooperation with the IAEA,' Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said.

In Washington, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said that building additional enrichment sites would only further isolate the Tehran government.

'If true, this would be yet another serious violation of Iran's clear obligations under multiple UN Security Council resolutions and another example of Iran choosing to isolate itself,' he said.

'The international community has made clear that Iran has rights, but with those rights come responsibilities. As the overwhelming IAEA Board of Governors vote made clear, time is running out for Iran to address the international community's growing concerns about its nuclear programme.'

The international community fears that the new nuclear enrichment plant at Fordo may be used by Iran to pursue secret military programmes.

'The resolution shows that all the negotiations (since October) were not geared to find a settlement but to cheat,' said Larijani, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator from 2005-07.

The speaker said that Iran would carefully watch the next moves by the world powers 'and act accordingly.'

Iran's IAEA ambassador, Ali-Asghar Soltanieh, said Saturday that the resolution had pushed Iran to limit its voluntary cooperation with the watchdog agency, saying future cooperation would solely be within the areas covered by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Meanwhile, 200 members of Parliament issued a statement condemning the IAEA resolution and calling on the government to restrict cooperation with the Vienna agency.

The spokesman of Parliament's foreign policy and security commission, Kazem Jalai, told Khabar news network that the IAEA resolution proved the UN body and world powers were following double standards.

'What is the use of following international commitments but not having any rights in return,' Jalali said.

The official news agency IRNA reported that security commission and Foreign Ministry officials will evaluate the resolution and might even consider pushing the government to revise diplomatic ties with countries that initiated and supported the resolution.

Although Parliament can urge the government to revise its nuclear policies, the nuclear issue is classified as a state matter, which means a final decision is made by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei via the Supreme National Security Council.