World
Iran ‘Basically’ a Nuclear Power, Warns Top Expert
It already has the key elements to build a weapon.
A BY MARISA HERMAN
leading expert on iran believes the islam- ic Republic, which promotes terrorism through- out the Middle East, is now basically a nuclear power after obtaining all the elements it needs
for a nuclear weapon. Bob Peters, a research fellow for nuclear deterrence and
missile defense at The Heritage Foundation’s Center for National Defense, said there are “three big pieces” neces- sary for a nuclear weapons program, including missiles, fissile material, and a warhead design. He contends Iran possesses all three. The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed in December that Iran has tripled its enrichment of uranium to 60%, reversing a slowdown earlier last year. According to Reuters, many diplomats believe that slow-
down was the result of secret talks between the United States and Iran that led to the release of U.S. citizens held in the Islamic Republic. An earlier congressional report citing U.S. intelligence assessments found that Tehran had the “capacity to pro- duce nuclear weapons at some point,” but “has not mas- tered all of the necessary technologies for building such
weapons.” Peters isn’t confident that is reality. He points out that
Iran has been working on missile technology for the past three decades where it has “slowly and steadily” increased the ability and accuracy of its long-range missiles. If Tehran’s missile technology was insufficient in any
way, Newsmax insider and retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Blaine Holt, said it could see a significant boost thanks to Moscow. Last month, Russia indicated that it no longer had to
obey U.N. Security Council restrictions on giving missile technology to its ally. “Supplies to and from Iran of products falling under the
Missile Technology Control Regime no longer require prior approval by the U.N. Security Council,” Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement. The restrictions were outlined in the 2015 Iran nuclear
deal, the pact in which numerous countries lifted sanctions against Iran in exchange for the Islamic Republic curbing its nuke program. In 2018, then-President Donald Trump withdrew the
U.S. from the Obama-era deal. Iran has continued to expand its nuclear capabilities,
though it claims the tech is for peaceful purposes only. If Iran didn’t already have nuclear weapons, Holt said
it would now that the restrictions on Moscow have been lifted.
NUKE ALERT Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, seen here at a military exhibition in Tehran, has continued to expand his nation’s nuclear capabilities, including the launch of a new ballistic Khorramshahr-4 missile.
48 NEWSMAX | FEBRUARY 2024
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