With all that has been happening in the world of late, there has been little attention paid to Iran and what it is "doing" about its quest to obtain nuclear capacity. We ignore what is happening at our own peril - as Jeremy Bernstein points out in this piece "Iran and the Bomb: An Update" in The New York Review of Books.
"With everything that is happening in the Middle East and North Africa, it seems that the matter of the Iranian nuclear program has been put on the back burner. Indeed, something happened this year that may have added to this complacency. It appears that the Siemens company in Germany revealed to Israeli and American intelligence officials the details of centrifuge control mechanisms that the Iranians had acquired illicitly. On the basis of this a worm—the “Stuxnet worm”—that could cause these centrifuges to run wild was created and apparently tested in the Israeli nuclear facilities in Dimona. The details of the worm have not been revealed, nor is it clear how it was installed. What we do know is that it is an exceedingly complicated bit of malware—perhaps the most complicated so far created.
The Iranians acknowledged the existence of this worm but stated that they would soon overcome it. As I will explain, it looks like they have. Of course the Israelis, for whom Iran’s nuclear program is matter of existential importance, have never put this on the back burner. Netanyahu made that very clear on his most recent American visit. I think one can assume that the Israelis will not allow Iran to get nuclear weapons. But I want to discuss the basis of their concern.
On May 24, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) distributed a report on their latest findings from Iran. It is a very disturbing document. One item in the summary states,
'While the Agency continues to verify the non-diversion of declared nuclear material at the nuclear facilities and LOF’s [Location Outside Facilities] declared by Iran under its Safeguards Agreement, as Iran is not providing the necessary cooperation, including not implementing its Additional Protocol [an agreement that Iran signed in December 2003 giving the IAEA additional powers of inspection], the Agency is unable to provide credible evidence about the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities in Iran, and therefore to conclude that all nuclear material in Iran is in peaceful activities.'"
"With everything that is happening in the Middle East and North Africa, it seems that the matter of the Iranian nuclear program has been put on the back burner. Indeed, something happened this year that may have added to this complacency. It appears that the Siemens company in Germany revealed to Israeli and American intelligence officials the details of centrifuge control mechanisms that the Iranians had acquired illicitly. On the basis of this a worm—the “Stuxnet worm”—that could cause these centrifuges to run wild was created and apparently tested in the Israeli nuclear facilities in Dimona. The details of the worm have not been revealed, nor is it clear how it was installed. What we do know is that it is an exceedingly complicated bit of malware—perhaps the most complicated so far created.
The Iranians acknowledged the existence of this worm but stated that they would soon overcome it. As I will explain, it looks like they have. Of course the Israelis, for whom Iran’s nuclear program is matter of existential importance, have never put this on the back burner. Netanyahu made that very clear on his most recent American visit. I think one can assume that the Israelis will not allow Iran to get nuclear weapons. But I want to discuss the basis of their concern.
On May 24, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) distributed a report on their latest findings from Iran. It is a very disturbing document. One item in the summary states,
'While the Agency continues to verify the non-diversion of declared nuclear material at the nuclear facilities and LOF’s [Location Outside Facilities] declared by Iran under its Safeguards Agreement, as Iran is not providing the necessary cooperation, including not implementing its Additional Protocol [an agreement that Iran signed in December 2003 giving the IAEA additional powers of inspection], the Agency is unable to provide credible evidence about the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities in Iran, and therefore to conclude that all nuclear material in Iran is in peaceful activities.'"
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