Iran is turning into North Korea, increasingly showing itself willing to trade the hunger and poverty of its people for the sake of the single-minded pursuit of a military advantage. As for the West, every time an announcement along these lines comes out, the specter of an Iranian nuclear test looms larger, though Iran will likely also go the North Korean route and detonate the bomb, let the world put two and two together for a bit, and then make a triumphant announcement.
The sense of urgency over the Ayatollah-Bomb (the other “A” in “A-bomb”) has greatly intensified since last fall, but we would not be where we are if this sense of urgency had been present much earlier.
“Ahmadinejad: Major nuclear announcement expected within days,” from CNN, February 11:
(CNN) — Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad announced Saturday that the nation will reveal “several major achievements in the nuclear domain” within days, state media reported.
Ahmadinejad did not offer details during his announcement at a rally to mark the 33rd anniversary of the Islamic Revolution.
But he slammed “hegemonic powers,” accusing them of pressuring the nation on the nuclear front.
In the near future, Iran’s nuclear demands will be met by the nation’s scientists, Ahmadinejad said at the Tehran event broadcast on Press TV
“Today you see that the Iranian nation has become nuclear and can supply many of its demands,” he said. “And God willing, in next few days, the whole world will witness the inauguration of several major achievements in the nuclear domain.
The news comes amid heightened tension between Iran and the West over its nuclear program.
The West believes Tehran may be trying to develop nuclear weapons, but Iran has long maintained that its nuclear program is solely for civilian energy production.
Tensions hit a boiling point weeks ago when Iran conducted military exercises in the Persian Gulf after threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping lane for oil.
Iran’s threat followed tough sanctions from Western nations aimed at stopping its suspected nuclear weapons program.