NICOSIA -- Iran has reported that a shipment of Russian nuclear equipment was being held in neighboring Azerbaijan.Azerbaijan, an ally of the United States, has acknowledged the delay. The Azeri government said it has sought to determine whether the nuclear shipment violated United Nations Security Council sanctions on Iran.
Iranian officials said their Foreign Ministry has demanded that Azeri authorities release the nuclear equipment. They said the equipment, intended for the Bushehr nuclear energy reactor, was held up at the Iranian-Azeri border.
"We have asked them to deliver the shipment as soon as possible," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammed Ali Husseini said. Ali Husseini did not identify the nuclear equipment held in Azerbaijan. The spokesman said the nuclear shipment has been in Azerbaijan for three weeks.
Now wouldn't THIS be interesting. A provocation?
[On Monday, CIA director Michael Hayden said North Korea built a nuclear plant in Syria that could have produced enough plutonium to assemble up to two atomic weapons per year. Hayden said full production of the plant -- destroyed by Israel in September 2007 -- would have been achieved within a year of operation.] Iran and Russia have agreed to accelerate the 1,000 megawatt Bushehr reactor, scheduled to begin full operations in October 2008. But on April 21, Bushehr's prime contractor, Russia's state-owned Atomstroiexport, said one or two trucks carrying equipment for Bushehr were stopped in Astara, along the Azeri-Iranian border.
Atomstroiexport spokeswoman Irina Yesipova said the trucks contained what she termed heat-isolating systems. Ms. Yesipova said she did not envision additional delays to Bushehr.
Iran has also reported the construction of a second nuclear reactor. Officials said the facility was being built along the Iranian border with Iraq and would have a capacity of 360 megawatts.
"Now we need to think about the fuel for it," Iranian ambassador to Russia, Gholamreza Ansari, said.
1 comment:
the proof - 40 years of godless communism does wonders for islamic states! i honestly believe that had the afghan commies been allowed to rule that country they would have largely stamped out the religious fanaticism, sexism and superstition of that country. and afghanistan would be a scruffy but functioning state, like its former SSR neighbours. this said, i think that central asian islam IS somewhat more rational than others - intermarriage between jews and muslims was and is quite commonplace. in fact a woman killed by qassam in israel in 2006 was a muslim from the caucasus married to a jew. nevertheless - some members of the RoP do kill jews in the 'stans - the head of the Tajik jewish community was murdered a few years back if i remember right. anyway, more power to Azerbaijan! and to hell with russia, hellhole that it is.
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