Ali Akbar Dareini, an Associated Press writer, reported, incorrectly, over AP: "The presence of a second uranium-enrichment site that could potentially produce material for a nuclear weapon has provided one of the strongest indications yet that Iran has something to hide."

Dareini goes on to write that "the existence of the secret site was first revealed by Western intelligence officials and diplomats on Friday." Dareini is mistaken. We learned of the facility when the IAEA announced that Iran had reported the facility the previous Monday in keeping with the safeguards agreement.

Dareini’s untruthful report of "a secret underground uranium enrichment facility whose existence has been hidden from international inspectors for years" helped to heighten the orchestrated alarm.

From the NYT

WASHINGTON — As the United States and Iran prepared for critical talks over Tehran’s nuclear program, the Iranian foreign minister arrived quietly in Washington on Wednesday to visit the unofficial embassy here, the first visit to the capital by an Iranian of that rank in a decade.

While there were no plans for the minister, Manouchehr Mottaki, to meet with any American officials, his curiously timed visit, which was approved by the Obama administration, may help thaw the atmosphere as the administration puts its policy of engagement with Iran to the test.

The State Department said Mr. Mottaki asked for permission to visit the staff at Iran’s interest section, a diplomatic outpost Iran maintains in the Pakistani Embassy, since it does not have relations with the United States. The last time an Iranian foreign minister was permitted to make such a visit was in the late 1990s, during the Clinton administration.

“It is an unusual coincidence; whether it’s a happy coincidence, we’ll see tomorrow,” said Philip J. Crowley, a State Department spokesman. “It doesn’t make the serious issues we confront any easier, but if it’s taken as a small gesture and contributes in some way, that will be terrific.”

With tensions over Iran’s nuclear ambitions on the rise, diplomats are to meet in Geneva Thursday in a secluded, 18th-century villa. The United States and five other countries were preparing to press Iran for “practical, tangible” steps to show its willingness to negotiate, a senior American official said.

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See toon at top.

G'day Gus,

The relationship between the US and the Israelis is probably the biggest danger to peace in the world today. Some European Nations, who are still trying to recover from the Wall Street financial disaster, may think that they do not have time to worry about the rights of a non-aggressive nation like Iran. But surely, in that case, they should have no comment at all. 

You have an Israeli “bull in a china shop” acting without rules or compassion against people who cannot defend themselves – and that is their excuse for continuing their aggression?

How can Obama genuinely approach a problem that is only based on hearsay while the truly rogue state of new Israel is plundering at will?  He states that it is not a case of unilateral action by the US. (that would be a change) but a consensus of N.A.T.O. members? There is safety in numbers?

Is new Israel a party to NATO, like it is a “party” to the U.N?

And even if they were, would they abide by the plans of that organization to perhaps exercise restraint in killing the people that new Israel hates?  Tribes with the same beginning as themselves?  Fellow Semites?

There just isn’t any logical reason to concentrate on a country like Iran as a possible cause of nuclear trouble with the same unjustified punishment that crucified Iraq – while the disease is Israel – one of their own? Crazy eh?

So Obama, with all the baggage that the fascist Bush left him, will try to tackle the problem and ignore the cause.

I believe that the all too often suggested “let’s reduce nuclear weapons” is just a dodge to attack Iran and placate new Israel – the real disease.

Most Middle East Semite countries have gone quiet due to the unbridled attacks by new Israel.  Iran is probably the last bastion for a fair and democratic treatment for the enemies of new Israel.

I am sorry Gus – I like the logic and wisdom in what you write and yet – I can only come to the conclusion that the attitude of the Zionists is making more enemies – even among those of the Diaspora who may suffer for their stupidity.

I hope not for the sake of the Jewish people all over the world.

Cheers Gus.

God Bless Australia.  NE OUBLIE.

Iran has agreed to allow nuclear inspectors into the country to view a controversial second uranium enrichment plant it had tried to keep hidden from the West.

That and other small concessions have come at a rare meeting in Geneva with the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany.

Getting Iran to the table has been no minor feat, given the 30-year freeze in relations with the United States and its stand-off with the West over its nuclear program.

In the lead-up to the meeting Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was still talking tough and pushing the line that Tehran was more than ready to stand up to the major powers.

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The Iranian are playing by the IAEA's book. They did announce that they were near completion of a new nuclear facility as per the rules of the IAEA. They did so, SO THAT THE IAEA INSPECTORS COULD COME AND INSPECT... Basically no-one has agreed to "the newly added rule" that "new nuclear facilities should be declared before constuction" and this addendum was never signed by Iran in their nuclear non-proliferation agreement.

And by the way, India and Pakistan — and Israel (see the Vanunu episode in double crossed) — are not in breach of the NPT because they haven't signed it in the first place (Iran has signed the NPT) and can do as they please without any bother from anyone, including build atom bombs till the cows come home.

The West — and its media sluts — acts as if it has won a great point by having "succeeded to have" the inspectors to inspect... The Iranians must be laughing wryly, shaking their heads at the West's hypocrisy, as the Iranians had opened the doors five days before the West's tempestuous request... But in the propagandist rags of the West, it makes good copy to appear as if... Oh boy...

By STEVEN ERLANGER and MARK LANDLER

GENEVA — Iran agreed on Thursday in talks with the United States and other major powers to open its newly revealed uranium enrichment plant near Qum to international inspection in the next two weeks and to send most of its openly declared enriched uranium to Russia to be turned into fuel for a small reactor that produces medical isotopes, senior American and other Western officials said.

Iran’s agreement in principle to export most of its enriched uranium for processing — if it happens — would represent a major accomplishment for the West, reducing Iran’s ability to make a nuclear weapon quickly and buying more time for negotiations to bear fruit.

If Iran has secret stockpiles of enriched uranium, however, the accomplishment would be hollow, a senior American official conceded.

The officials described the long day of talks here with Iran, the first such discussions in which the United States has participated fully, as a modest success on a long and complicated road. Iran had at least finally engaged with the big powers on its nuclear program after more than a year, and had agreed to some tangible, confidence-building steps before another meeting with the same participants before the end of this month.

But despite the relatively promising outcome, the Obama administration was at pains to strike a cautious tone, given Iran’s history of duplicity, its crackdown on its own people after the tainted June presidential elections and President Obama’s concern about being perceived as naïve or susceptible to a policy of Iranian delays.

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Methinks that the whole succession of events was planned between Russia and Iran long before this agreement. I could elaborate here but I won't... except say this: it takes a lot of work to organise such process...

G’day Gus,

I must say I am a little surprised at your recent posts in this item.

It seems that you are cautious of the Iranians “playing by the IAEA’S book” – yet with all of the confusion passed on to the masses, this would seem to be a good thing?  Is it a rule that Iran may be complying with some rules while Israel acknowledges none at all? It appears that Israel considers the entire world to be their enemies and, as such, they do not trust anyone - why should we trust them?

You say that:  “And by the way, India and Pakistan — and Israel (see the Vanunu episode in double crossed) — are not in breach of the NPT because they haven't signed it in the first place (Iran has signed the NPT) and can do as they please without any bother from anyone, including build atom bombs till the cows come home.”

Since the three you mention are in fact Nuclear “armed” – even though new Israel consistently denies it – wouldn’t if be more prudent to put pressure on those who already have nuclear weapons to sign – and abide – by the NPT? Seems logical to me. 

Since North Korea is not a signatory to the NPT as well – does that mean that they too can “do as they please…including atom bombs…”? But then, since NK is NOT a nuclear armed power, those of the world who are, should prevent them from becoming another one? Obviously so that those who have can dictate to those who haven’t?   

Considering the unstable Pakistan and the unreliable India and the fascist Israel, the double standard seems to have over-taken you too.

I am a simple man Gus and I believe in the theory that the solution to a problem is usually the most simple. We have nations we contemporarily classify as civilized, backward, third world and, most of all Christian/Muslim or Hebrew.

I believe that the “powers that be”, especially since WW 2, have created horrendous weapons to dominate other nations – not to defend themselves.

The U.S. has used the fear principle on its gullible and multi-national/cultural citizens since their revolutionary war. No one in any country today can expect their media – free or controlled – to tell them the truth about anything.  And the only difference in all types of nations is the question – who are intended to gain by the lies?

So I reason that the information (propaganda) fed to us is to frighten us into believing that there is danger in foreigners coming to our shores.  And yet – we still encourage it as though only the illiterate are dangers to our culture. Struth.

I wonder Gus, what would happen if every nation of the world had WMD’s.  And further – what would happen if one nuclear “block” attacked another nuclear “block” – Armageddon?

So, the only way to avoid a nuclear destruction of the planet is - not to have any at all. No nit-picking like we are doing with Climate Change - just don't have any - no one!

Let’s see America lead by example – not bloody likely.

Cheers mate.  God bless Australia.  NE OUBLIE.

By WILLIAM J. BROAD and DAVID E. SANGER

Senior staff members of the United Nations nuclear agency have concluded in a confidential analysis that Iran has acquired “sufficient information to be able to design and produce a workable” atom bomb.

The report by experts in the International Atomic Energy Agency stresses in its introduction that its conclusions are tentative and subject to further confirmation of the evidence, which it says came from intelligence agencies and its own investigations.

But the report’s conclusions, described by senior European officials, go well beyond the public positions taken by several governments, including the United States.

Two years ago, American intelligence agencies published a detailed report concluding that Tehran halted its efforts to design a nuclear weapon in 2003. But in recent months, Britain has joined France, Germany and Israel in disputing that conclusion, saying the work has been resumed.

A senior American official said last week that the United States was now re-evaluating its 2007 conclusions.

The atomic agency’s report also presents evidence that beyond improving upon bomb-making information gathered from rogue nuclear experts around the world, Iran has done extensive research and testing on how to fashion the components of a weapon. It does not say how far that work has progressed.

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On the Unintelligent Uses of Intelligence
Written by Chris Floyd      
Friday, 02 October 2009 16:15
I urge you most strenuously to repair immediately to Arthur Silber's site, and there set yourself to school on the dangerously unintelligent uses of "intelligence" – not only by ever-deceitful regimes and their sycophantic courtiers, but also, most grievously, by staunch opponents of the imperial system as well: "Fools for Empire (II): The Inescapable Pervasiveness of the Ruling Class Paradigm."

The essay is eloquent, cogent, deeply informed, insightful – and important. In addition to his own unique insights, Silber mines wisdom from such trenchant observers as Chalmers Johnson, Ray McGovern, Barbara Tuchman and Gabriel Kolko to give the lie to the corrosive belief that any output from the "intelligence" agencies can or should be relied upon – and the accompanying lie that our leaders and their spies possess super-secret knowledge which we peons must defer to. As Silber notes, the historical facts demonstrate overwhelmingly and irrefutably that "intelligence" always has been – and, more importantly, cannot avoid being – manipulated, incompetent, corrupted and wrong. Thus his observation:


This is why I maintain that you must always argue the policy, and that you must never argue about the intelligence. To the extent you argue the intelligence, you are doing the ruling class's bidding. They can change the intelligence quickly enough when they think doing so is necessary, as they have done in the past and as they will again. If you grant the legitimacy and accuracy of intelligence assessments on even one occasion, and if you utilize those assessments in making your own arguments, you're making your own work that much harder, and your future arguments will be far less convincing than they would be otherwise.

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Gus: methink that the "new intelligence" and rethink about Iran's Nuke capability is not accidental. It's part of a managed progression of information release designed to steer the "policy" towards war, no matter what... If one has ever studied nuclear power and nuclear bomb making, one knows that the nuclear bomb making technology is well known and readily available... There are no secrets left to make a crude bomb...

G’day Gus,

You say that:  “And by the way, India and Pakistan — and Israel (see the Vanunu episode in double crossed) — are not in breach of the NPT because they haven't signed it in the first place (Iran has signed the NPT) and can do as they please without any bother from anyone, including build atom bombs till the cows come home.”

Since the three you mention are in fact Nuclear “armed” – even though new Israel consistently denies it – wouldn’t if be more prudent to put pressure on those who already have nuclear weapons to sign – and abide – by the NPT? Seems logical to me. 

-------------------

Dear Ernest, I was being sarcaaaaaaastic... I totally agree with you. I was merely pointing out the hypocrisy till the cows come home... And note that Israel does not deny nor admits to having nuclear weapons (see the Vanunu affair in double crossed)

From wikipedia

Iran is not known to possess weapons of mass destruction, and has signed treaties repudiating possession of them, including the Biological Weapons Convention, the Chemical Weapons Convention, and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Over 100,000 Iranian troops and civilians were victims to chemical weapons during the 1980s Iran–Iraq War.[1][2] On ideological grounds, a public and categorical religious decree against the development, production, stockpiling and use of nuclear weapons has been issued by the leader of the Islamic Republic.[3]

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From Wikipedia

The nuclear program of Iran was launched in the 1950s with the help of the United States as part of the Atoms for Peace[1] The support, encouragement and participation of the United States and Western European governments in Iran's nuclear program continued until the 1979 Islamic revolution that toppled the Shah of Iran.[2] program.

After the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the Iranian government temporarily disbanded elements of the program, and then revived it with less Western assistance than during the pre-revolution era. Iran's nuclear program has included several research sites, a uranium mine, a nuclear reactor, and uranium processing facilities that include three known uranium enrichment plants.

From reuters

PARIS (Reuters) - A French plant that produces a quarter of the world's enriched uranium is 10 percent owned by Iran, which has had the stake for more than 30 years, nuclear reactor maker Areva said on Tuesday.

Confirming a press report in a French satirical weekly, state-controlled Areva said it owned the remainder of the Eurodif plant, which was commissioned in the early 1970s.

The weekly Le Canard Enchaine said in its edition to be published on Wednesday that the Shah of Iran struck a deal in the early 1970s when the country was turning toward nuclear energy to cut dependence on its oil production.

"Iran has never received a single gram of enriched uranium from France," an Areva spokeswoman said.

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Perusing this site, one would find Gus' references to this last item.

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From the BBC

Pressuring Iran and threatening further sanctions over its nuclear programme would be counter-productive, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says.

Speaking after talks in Moscow with US counterpart Hillary Clinton, Mr Lavrov said every effort should be made to continue negotiations.

His comments appeared to fall short of the tougher commitment sought by Washington towards Iran.

But Mrs Clinton praised Russia for its help on the issue.

The US secretary of state, in Moscow at the end of a five-day European tour, told a joint news conference with Mr Lavrov that Russia had "been extremely co-operative in the work that we have done together" on Iran.

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see toon at top

The UN nuclear watchdog's governing body has passed a resolution condemning Iran for developing a uranium enrichment site in secret.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) also demanded that Iran freeze the project immediately.

The resolution, the first against Iran in nearly four years, was passed by a 25-3 margin with six abstentions.

Iran called the move "useless" but the US said it showed time was running out for Iran to address key issues.

Iran says its nuclear programme is for peaceful energy purposes, but the US says it is seeking nuclear weapons.

In September, it emerged that as well as its uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, Iran had a second such facility near the town of Qom.

See toon at top...

This "not so smart attack" on Iran in the same manner as Afghanistan and Iraq should shame the states who accept yet again this obviously untenable argument against their own professed need for equality and freedom - for goodness sakes.

Knowing that the so-called "Israel" is a much-denied nuclear armed aggressor and that the unstable states of Pakistan and India are being conveniently involved in the now "normal" attempt by individual Middle East States to act as though they can actually govern their own country – without American permission.  Can anyone of even modest intelligence be conned yet again by the Bush regime's policy of oil based aggression?  No country in the world, eastern or undefended, became the target of the Bush?Cheney criminals.

Do the paranoiac people of America still believe that the nomads of Afghanistan; the history rich religious people of Iraq and Iran are genuinely planning to attack America?  When Bush’s best friends in Saudi Arabia were being dined and wined in the US, the obviously planned 9/II attack took place.

But, planned by whom?

These much-invented attack possibilities have been dictating US world foreign policy since the turn of the 20th Century.  

WHY is it that an attack on the US is unforgiveable while they themselves lead the most illegal invasions and incursions in the history of the world? For our benefit or for that of the murdered citizens of the countries they want to exploit?

We Australians, IMHO from the beginning of our identity being established with Federation, have never ever been asked to, or expected to, unilaterally invade another sovereign country who has not or apparently intended to, impose a threat to our existence.

That is before the US puppet John Howard.

Let us not compound that crime by accepting it as the norm.

I don’t care about how far away possible enemies may be – but I do care about the many ordinary citizens of invaded nations who desire to be “free” of US military control and  I would just like our government to remain uncommitted to a regime intent on constant war.

I was always ashamed of the Howard “New Order” when they sent our troops to invade a sovereign nation just for the purpose of kissing the arse of G.W. Bush.

I believe that the world must realign itself to ensure that the fallacy of the US being the richest country in the world is as unstable as the Wall Street collapse has demonstrated.

While they make war on anyone who defies their dictates – their own citizens are dying to impose a dictatorial policy on nations who may have once believed in democracy and freedom.

God Bless Australia, especially you “John Howard”.  NE OUBLIE.