Iranian Roundup Part 2

Elite Iranian force seen balking at compromise on nuke program

WASHINGTON — Iran's leading military force is not expected to agree to a Western demand to suspend the nation's uranium enrichment program.

A U.S. military analysis said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps would oppose any suspension or revision in Iran's nuclear weapons program.

The study said such a suspension would result in a decline of the IRGC.

"The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps controls the Iranian nuclear program and will be loath to give up these privileges," the analysis stated.

The analysis was presented as Iran withheld a response to a Western incentive package that would offer nuclear fuel and civilian technology in exchange for a suspension of Teheran's uranium enrichment program. At the last minute, Teheran canceled an Iranian-European Union meeting scheduled for July 5 in Brussels.

In a presentation to the American Enterprise Institute, Michael Connell, a staffer at the Center for Naval Analyses, said the prospect of Teheran agreeing to a Western incentive package to end the uranium enrichment program was low. Connell said such a decision would require approval from rival elements in the regime, particularly the IRGC.

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