Obama race to speed catastrophe
Commentary:
Obama's Dangerous Race for an Iran Deal
With only two weeks to go before the deadline for the end of the current round of nuclear talks with Iran, the Obama administration has been conducting what can only be considered a full-court press aimed at producing a deal before November 24. This is in marked contrast to the relaxed attitude toward the previo...us deadline for the talks that passed in June and was extended to the fall. It also seems to contradict the behavior of Washington’s European negotiating partners who seemed to be reconciling themselves to yet another extension in the familiar pattern of stalling that has always characterized Iran’s conduct of the negotiations. But though the latest talks in Oman ended without agreement, the flurry of diplomatic action raises the question of whether President Obama believes he needs to get a deal done now before Republicans take control of the Senate in January." Bear in mind this from Daily Alert "Iran Nuclear Threat Greater by Fivefold, Says Former Watchdog Chief - Richard Kerbaj
Olli Heinonen, who spent 27 years at the International Atomic Energy Agency, said Iran could have up to 5,000 IR-2m centrifuges rather than the 1,008 it has claimed. The IR-2m devices are up to five times more effective in enriching uranium than older IR-1 types. Heinonen said Tehran "could have up to 4,000 to 5,000 centrifuges or raw materials for them" located outside two of its largest nuclear sites, Natanz and Fordow. Heinonen is concerned the negotiations will merely focus on what needs to be done about Iran's 18,000 or so IR-1 centrifuges and the 1,008 IR-2m devices.
"There are indications Iran has acquired carbon fiber, the key raw material for the advanced IR-2m centrifuges, to manufacture several thousand. The IAEA has seen 1,000 of them in Natanz and the key question is: where are the rest?" He warned any agreement that does not compel Iran to open all its nuclear facilities to scrutiny would "make no sense." "It is important to have in this verification scheme an agreement that the IAEA can also verify all the centrifuges in Iran and not only those which are in Natanz or Fordow." (The Times-UK)
•Iran's Uranium Stockpile Grows before Deadline for Nuclear Deal - Fredrik Dahl
The International Atomic Energy Agency issued a confidential report on Iran to IAEA member states on Friday, noting that Iran's stockpile of low-enriched uranium gas has grown by 8% to nearly 8.4 tons in about two months. Western experts say Iran would now be able to amass enough high-enriched fissile material for one bomb in a few months, if it opted for such a weapon of mass destruction. (Reuters)
•Obama Doubts Iran Nuclear Deal as Oman Talks Go into Monday
Iran, the U.S. and EU will hold an unscheduled second day of talks on Monday, on disagreements blocking resolution of a dispute over Tehran's nuclear program, a U.S. official and Iranian state media said. In the U.S., meanwhile, President Barack Obama said a final step in the talks would involve Iran providing "verifiable, lock-tight assurances that they can't develop a nuclear weapon." "There's still a big gap," he said. "We may not be able to get there." (Reuters-Guardian-UK)
Leader Khamenei Calling for Israel's Destruction
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the Cabinet Sunday: "We are not prepared to tolerate more demonstrations in the heart of our cities in which Hamas or ISIS flags are waved and calls are made to redeem Palestine with blood and fire, calling in effect for the destruction of the State of Israel."
"Standing behind this incitement are - first of all - the various Islamic movements: Hamas and the Islamic movement in Israel....Also standing behind this incitement is the Palestinian Authority and its leader, Abu Mazen [Abbas]. The website of their official body, Fatah, explains that the Jewish people were, in effect, never here, that the Temple was never here, that David, Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah and the kings and prophets of Israel - are all fiction."
"The leader of Iran, Khamenei...just yesterday he called for our destruction....Against such an Iran, which is controlled by such a regime, we must do everything so that it does not acquire nuclear weapons or the ability to produce nuclear weapons on short notice....Israel will not countenance an agreement that leaves Iran as a nuclear threshold state." (Prime Minister's Office)
Commentary:
Obama's Dangerous Race for an Iran Deal
With only two weeks to go before the deadline for the end of the current round of nuclear talks with Iran, the Obama administration has been conducting what can only be considered a full-court press aimed at producing a deal before November 24. This is in marked contrast to the relaxed attitude toward the previo...us deadline for the talks that passed in June and was extended to the fall. It also seems to contradict the behavior of Washington’s European negotiating partners who seemed to be reconciling themselves to yet another extension in the familiar pattern of stalling that has always characterized Iran’s conduct of the negotiations. But though the latest talks in Oman ended without agreement, the flurry of diplomatic action raises the question of whether President Obama believes he needs to get a deal done now before Republicans take control of the Senate in January." Bear in mind this from Daily Alert "Iran Nuclear Threat Greater by Fivefold, Says Former Watchdog Chief - Richard Kerbaj
Olli Heinonen, who spent 27 years at the International Atomic Energy Agency, said Iran could have up to 5,000 IR-2m centrifuges rather than the 1,008 it has claimed. The IR-2m devices are up to five times more effective in enriching uranium than older IR-1 types. Heinonen said Tehran "could have up to 4,000 to 5,000 centrifuges or raw materials for them" located outside two of its largest nuclear sites, Natanz and Fordow. Heinonen is concerned the negotiations will merely focus on what needs to be done about Iran's 18,000 or so IR-1 centrifuges and the 1,008 IR-2m devices.
"There are indications Iran has acquired carbon fiber, the key raw material for the advanced IR-2m centrifuges, to manufacture several thousand. The IAEA has seen 1,000 of them in Natanz and the key question is: where are the rest?" He warned any agreement that does not compel Iran to open all its nuclear facilities to scrutiny would "make no sense." "It is important to have in this verification scheme an agreement that the IAEA can also verify all the centrifuges in Iran and not only those which are in Natanz or Fordow." (The Times-UK)
•Iran's Uranium Stockpile Grows before Deadline for Nuclear Deal - Fredrik Dahl
The International Atomic Energy Agency issued a confidential report on Iran to IAEA member states on Friday, noting that Iran's stockpile of low-enriched uranium gas has grown by 8% to nearly 8.4 tons in about two months. Western experts say Iran would now be able to amass enough high-enriched fissile material for one bomb in a few months, if it opted for such a weapon of mass destruction. (Reuters)
•Obama Doubts Iran Nuclear Deal as Oman Talks Go into Monday
Iran, the U.S. and EU will hold an unscheduled second day of talks on Monday, on disagreements blocking resolution of a dispute over Tehran's nuclear program, a U.S. official and Iranian state media said. In the U.S., meanwhile, President Barack Obama said a final step in the talks would involve Iran providing "verifiable, lock-tight assurances that they can't develop a nuclear weapon." "There's still a big gap," he said. "We may not be able to get there." (Reuters-Guardian-UK)
Leader Khamenei Calling for Israel's Destruction
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the Cabinet Sunday: "We are not prepared to tolerate more demonstrations in the heart of our cities in which Hamas or ISIS flags are waved and calls are made to redeem Palestine with blood and fire, calling in effect for the destruction of the State of Israel."
"Standing behind this incitement are - first of all - the various Islamic movements: Hamas and the Islamic movement in Israel....Also standing behind this incitement is the Palestinian Authority and its leader, Abu Mazen [Abbas]. The website of their official body, Fatah, explains that the Jewish people were, in effect, never here, that the Temple was never here, that David, Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah and the kings and prophets of Israel - are all fiction."
"The leader of Iran, Khamenei...just yesterday he called for our destruction....Against such an Iran, which is controlled by such a regime, we must do everything so that it does not acquire nuclear weapons or the ability to produce nuclear weapons on short notice....Israel will not countenance an agreement that leaves Iran as a nuclear threshold state." (Prime Minister's Office)
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