Iran Welcomes Move To "Correct" Nuke Claim

Regime Pleased With New U.S. Intelligence Report That Reverses White House View

(CBS/AP)  Iran's foreign minister on Tuesday welcomed the U.S. decision to "correct" its claim that Tehran has an active nuclear weapons program, state-run radio reported.

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki was referring to a U.S. intelligence assessment released Monday that reversed earlier claims that Iran had restarted its weapons program in 2005 after suspending it in 2003.

Iran touted the new report as vindication of its longtime claims that its nuclear program is peaceful. The initial response by Iranian officials was measured, without the heated rhetoric that has marked the confrontation with the United States over its nuclear program. There was no immediate comment from hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said it was "natural that we welcome ... countries that correct their views realistically which in the past had questions and ambiguities about (Iran's nuclear activities)."

Mottaki said various reports recently issued about Iran's nuclear program, including an IAEA report last month, showed "the current trend of Iran's nuclear activities is peaceful."

Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini said the new report proved that past claims by President Bush that Iran was pursuing nuclear weapons were false.

"Remarks by Bush and other U.S. administration officials, who have continuously talked about the danger of Iran's nuclear program, are baseless and unreliable," Hosseini said.

The new U.S. intelligence report Monday concluded that Iran's nuclear weapons development program has been halted since the fall of 2003 because of international pressure.

The finding is part of a National Intelligence Estimate on Iran that also cautions that Tehran continues to enrich uranium and still could develop a bomb between 2010 and 2015 if it decided to do so.

In the previous intelligence assessment in 2005, U.S. agencies believed Tehran was determined to develop a nuclear weapons capability and was continuing its weapons development program. The new report concludes that Iran's decisions are rational and pragmatic, and that Tehran is more susceptible to diplomatic and financial pressure than previously thought.

"Tehran's decision to halt its nuclear weapons program suggests it is less determined to develop nuclear weapons than we have been judging since 2005," says the unclassified summary of the secret report.

Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, said the report "should help to defuse the current crisis." He said the U.S. intelligence findings were consistent with the findings of his agency.

ElBaradei "urges all parties concerned to enter without delay into negotiations. Such negotiations are needed to build confidence about the future direction of Iran's nuclear program" and "bring about a comprehensive and durable solution" to Iran's standoff with the U.N., the International Atomic Energy Agency said in a statement.

U.S. allies France and Britain said sanctions were still an option, insisting the report did not completely lift concerns over Tehran. "We must maintain pressure on Iran," said French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Pascale Andreani.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's spokesman Michael Allam said, "The report confirms we were right to be worried about Iran seeking to develop nuclear weapons. It also shows that the sanctions program and international pressure has had some effect."

CBS News correspondent Elizabeth Palmer reports that those sanctions are already on the drawing board that they do specifically try and stop money and much needed investment from flowing into Iran.

There was no immediate comment from Russia or China, which have resisted pressure for new sanctions and hold veto powers at the United Nations.

"Although Iran still needs to clarify some important aspects of its past and present nuclear activities, the agency has no concrete evidence of an ongoing nuclear weapons program or undeclared nuclear facilities in Iran," ElBaradei said in a statement.

Russia's foreign minister said Tuesday that Iran has promised to answer all outstanding questions of the U.N. nuclear watchdog.

"(Iran's) Security Council secretary told us about their cooperation with the IAEA and elaborated on the plans of the IAEA and Iran to close all outstanding issues in the nearest time possible," Sergey Lavrov told reporters after President Vladimir Putin's meeting with Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili.

"We are taking note of Tehran's determination to fully cooperate with the IAEA. We also appreciate Iran's adherence ... to the treaty on nonproliferation of nuclear weapons and observing all of its content," Lavrov said.

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Read the NIE Estimate on Iran Nukes

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The findings come at a time of escalating tensions between the United States and Iran, which President Bush has labeled part of an "axis of evil," along with Iraq and North Korea.

Speaking to reporters at a White House news conference Tuesday, Mr. Bush said, "I view this report as a warning signal that they had the program, they halted the program… The reason why it's a warning signal is they could restart it."

He also asserted that the report means "nothing's changed."

In October, Mr. Bush said, "If you're interested in avoiding World War III, it seems like you ought to be interested in preventing them (Iran) from having the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon."

Rand Beers, who resigned from Mr. Bush's National Security Council just before the Iraq war, said the report should derail any appetite for war on the administration's part, and should reinvigorate regional diplomacy. "The new NIE throws cold water on the efforts of those urging military confrontation with Iran," he said.

However, Israel's defense minister said Tuesday that Israeli intelligence believes Iran is still trying to develop a nuclear weapon.

"There are differences in the assessments of different organizations in the world about this, and only time will tell who is right," Defense Minister Ehud Barak told Army Radio.

On Monday, senior intelligence officials said they failed to detect Iran's fall 2003 halt in nuclear weapons development in time to reflect it in the 2005 estimate.

One of the officials said Iran is the most challenging country to spy on - harder even than North Korea, a notoriously closed society. "We put a lot more collection assets against this," the official said, "but gaps remain." The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject.

Mr. Bush was briefed on the 100-page document on Nov. 28. National Intelligence Estimates represent the most authoritative written judgments of all 16 U.S. spy agencies. Congress and other executive agencies were briefed Monday, and foreign governments will be briefed beginning Tuesday, the officials said.

The intelligence officials said they do not know all the reasons why Iran halted its weapons program, or what might trigger its resumption. They said they are confident that diplomatic and political pressure played a key role, but said the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Libya's termination of its nuclear program and the implosion of the illegal nuclear smuggling network run by Pakistani scientist A.Q. Khan also might have influenced Tehran.

To develop a nuclear weapon, Iran needs to design and engineer a warhead, obtain enough fissile material, and build a delivery vehicle such as a missile. The intelligence agencies now believe Iran halted warhead engineering four years ago and as of mid-2007 had not restarted it.

But Iran is still enriching uranium for its civilian nuclear reactors that produce electricity. That leaves open the possibility that fissile material could be diverted to covert nuclear sites to produce highly enriched uranium for a warhead.

[countyboy21]

Is Iran going 2 sell it''s aging "stock piles" of enriched uranium? if so! maby they could donate the sci-fi stuff 2 countries that "have" powerplants?

[samsel3]

Nothing has changed on Iran. The administrations interest in Iran & nukes is a smoke screen for their real agenda. Their true interests are Cheney''s energy policy.Condi rice is a former board member of chevron oil and mouthpiece for the administrations energy policy. Part of that policy is the The Caspian Sea pipeline which will go through Turkmenistan, Afghanistan,Pakistan,India & Nepal.It will be cheaper to construct if they can go through part of Iran, but regime change is necessary first. The Caspian sea area holds one third of the world''s oil and south asian oil markets are their target market. This pipeline was also the reason for the Afghanistan invasion. Cheney''s energy policy is the root of all these middle east wars, a federal court judge sealed all documents associated with it for the administration, and the national media are not allowed to discuss or comment on it. More troops are needed in Afghasnistan to protect the contractors building the pipeline. Iran stands in the way of total control of global oil with direct sales of oil to china and is now in the crosshairs. China said there would be dire consequences if the US interfered with there direct oil contracts with Iran. Both parties in the Congress should be very concerned with China''s growing war machine and need for oil. They are the real threat & the administration doesn''t care they are in control!!! All that matters to them is BIG OIL and their corporate stock portfolios

[juwboy]

patriotic9:

The Palestinians were close collaborators with the Nazis so you cannot claim that "innocent" Palestinians are being punished for crimes against Jews by European Christians.

Following his failed revolt against the British in the late 1930s, the Palestinian leader, the Grand Mufti, fled in cowardly humiliation to Berlin, where he remained as Hitler''s guest for the entire duration of World War II.

While there, in anticipation of Rommel''s Afrika Korps'' eastward advance across North Africa and into the Middle East, he collaborated with Adolf Eichmann in designing and choosing the sites for Auschwitz-style Jew extermination camps in Palestine and the rest of the Middle East.

If the Brits hadn''t sent Rommel into a tire-screeching U-turn in the eastern Egyptian desert, the Palestinians would have been active, willing and enthusiastic participants in Hitler''s Final Solution to the Jewish Problem.

In any case, the SS, following in the wake of Rommel''s advance, recruited North African Arabs to work as guards in European concentration camps, where they were renowned for the eager and cruel sadism with which they performed their assigned duties.

PALESTINIANS were NAZIS WITHOUT SWASTIKAS then and PALESTINIANS are NAZIS WITHOUT SWASTIKAS now.

[tbweb]

Posted by b-easy63 at 11:13 PM : Dec 04, 2007,,,

I don''t think any nation would care too much if Iran had nuclear power if Iran was seen as a responsible nation capable of being trusted with nuclear power. Iran supports armed organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah and while its true one nations terrorist are another nations freedom fighters, even if you don''t call Hamas and Hezzbollah terrorist they both still conduct undeclared war and aggression against Israel and fly no nations flag while committing these aggressive acts with support, backing and funding from Iran. Iran while keeping its hands clean is using these groups to wage war against Israel by proxy. It is logical to assume that if Iran had nuclear weapons it might pass them on to Hamas and Hezzbollah since Iran is funding and arming them now. Iran has recently and openly admitted to supporting these groups after years of denial. Iran does not recognize Israels right to exist and calls for Israels removal from the map, whether it be wiped off the map, erased off the map, does the language or expression matter, Iran wants Israel gone! Iran''s very public and hostile rhetoric towards Israel is why so many are concerned with an Iran with nuclear power, and justifiably so! Israel may have nuclear weapons but Israel is not calling for Iran to be wiped off the map, is not in the media with hostile rhetoric towards Iran and recognizes Iran''s right to exist.

[darkfyreaol]

How is it that the UN imposes nothing on the current nations that possess nuclear weapons, urging them to disarm? America still has a stockpile that alone, can wipe out all intelligent life on Earth.

patriotic9 re: PSYCHOTIC CHRISTIANS

Yes, oh yes indeed I disagree.

I don''t understand where you are coming from. Unless you are from the middle east. Then I understand. You have an agenda towards anything American. Including Christianity. I am a Christian but I also believe in Geology, Physics and Science. I am a supporter of Ron Paul for President who believes that the U.S. should stay out of foreign affairs. I also don''t believe that we should be supporting Israel. They can take care of themselves. But what does all of this have to do with Jesus? A man who preached peace and forgiveness. You should be thankful that Americans are predominantly Christians. PSYCHOTIC or not. If we were like WWII Germany and had Hitler for a leader, guess what? We would have probably leveled the entire region of the middle east by now, taken over everything and exterminated anyone that we didn''t like. But you know what? Israel has over 200 nuclear weapons pointed right at there neighbors. And they are NOT Christians. Someday the U.S. will pull out of the middle east and no longer try to broker peace between Israel and the surrounding countries. 200 nuclear weapons. And all it takes is one mistake, just one. Maybe you should pray that America remains in the area and that PSYCHOTIC CHRISTIANS remain PSYCHOTIC CHRISTIANS.

[b-easy63]

Posted by tbweb at 03:42 PM : Dec 04, 2007


Why exactly should Iran or any other country NOT want a Nuclear weapons program? Everyone knows America does not attack countries with Nukes so it is a deterrent against attacks by us as well as others right?

And if Iran does want a nuclear program--wouldn''t it have to be secret in order to be allowed to continue? Where was our intelligence when Israel was creating theirs? Some experts say that we not only knew and aided Israel in creating their program, we provided the science.....

But what exactly is the "club" of nuclear buddies? Is it the same club that said using up the wealth of other nations trees and plants and oil, etc was the sole purview of America and those America handpicked yet insisted the use by the people even in those countries who owned the resources should be controlled or not allowed?

What exactly is wrong with this picture and our view on our place in the world as well as everyone else''s?

[patriotic9]

It%u2019s ridiculous to have intellectual debate with a CHRISTIAN since CHRISTIANITY is PSYCHOSIS and CHRISTIANS are PSYCHOTICS. I am not just making a statement but prove it with valid, sound and undeniable reasons;

Do you see any connection between SINS committed by ADAM and EVE, SINNERS are those NEW BORN CHILDREN born in SINS who cant even think about committing a SIN and the price is paid by a THIRD PARTY FREE of SINS named JESUS.

Do you see any connection between JESUS-LOVER to be GOD-NEGLECTED and JESUS-HATERS to be GOD-CHOSEN?

Do you see any connection between people killed by HITLER and price paid by those PALESTINIANS who can''t even speak the language spoken by HITLER?

Do you see any connection between CONCENTRATION CAMPS in GERMANY and ISRAEL founded in a completely different country named PALESTINE?

Do you see any connection between OSAMA BEEN-FOGOTTEN in TORA BORA and PSYCHOTIC CHRISTIAN BUSH attacking IRAQ which had nothing to do with 9/11?

On the basis of above mentioned reasons, I came to this CONCLUSION;

"CHRISTIANITY is PSYCHOSIS and CHRISTIANS are PSYCHOTICS"

If anybody disagrees with me, please feel free to correct me with valid and sound reasons. If you prove me wrong, I''ll acknowledge my mistake and change my point of view.

[patriotic9]

Do you support the idea of GOD-NEGLECTED AMERICAN SOLDIERS losing their limbs and suffer from TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury) and PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) for a NON-AMERICAN CAUSE, NON-AMERICAN GOD-CHOSEN PEOPLE and NON-AMERICAN HOLY LAND?

Do you support the idea of GOD-NEGLECTED AMERICANS working day and night to pay tax to the government and NON-AMERICANS, CHOSEN by an ANTI-AMERICAN, RACIST and UNJUST GOD to snatch more then $3 Billions a year from the US TAX MONEY for the killing of those who give us OIL in cheaper prices?

For how long, you plan to continue your animosity against GOD-NEGLECTED AMERICANS and UNHOLY LAND UNITED STATES?

Why do you think, we shouldn%u2019t help ARABS in the destruction of ISRAEL to enjoy OIL in cheap price?

Why do you think we should protect existence of ISRAEL far away from the CONCENTRATION CAMPS in GERMANY to buy HATRED, TERRORISM and 9/11 against UNHOLY LAND UNITED STATES and GOD-NEGLECTED AMERICANS?

[patriotic9]

What is worse than anything you complain or comment about on these boards is the sickness of your own mind and heart that must spring up from a foul root of bitterness inside you......please.....if you have nothing to do, don''''t do it here.

Posted by noseonurface at 07:27 PM : Dec 04, 2007

If you disgree with anything I said, please pinpoint that and prove me wrong with valid reasons. If you bring valid reasons to prove me wrong, I''ll acknowledge my mistake and change my point of view.

[beehive21-2009]

Put the shoe on the other foot and they would attack,the Red Repubician Guard would kill you all your families because you practice ( freedom of religion ),the cleric tell them it''s the wrong god, brainwashed robots since birth,that is what your dealing with.

[prinzowhales]

grazinggoat--Yes, its antoher in a long line of senior officials in the world intelligence community who have come out to say loud and clear 9-11 WAS AN INSIDE JOB!!

Unfortunately, for true believers like ''notblue'' reality is no substitute for fantasy...They will be dismissed as a ''loon''...a ''wingnut'' or some other derogatory term they learned from ''Phone ***'' O''Reilly or ''Junkie'' Limbaugh to avoid thinking about reality. Cossiga was the head of state of a NATO member...but for people like ''notblue'' he might as well be a dishwasher at Olive Garden.

[prinzowhales]

notblue posted--Prinzowales and Grazingoat= Terrorist propogandists, you people have less credibillity than the hated Bush! But you continue to be great comedy, true entertainment, keep up the good work.
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Do you deny that former President Cossiga said this? If you go to the link and read the article, even someone like you could eventually come up with a rebuttal of the source...if there were one...but, all you can do is rage and spew...Remember ''de nile'' is not just a river in Egypt.

[dmhphils]

Posted by patriotic9 at 07:20 PM : Dec 04, 2007
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What is worse than anything you complain or comment about on these boards is the sickness of your own mind and heart that must spring up from a foul root of bitterness inside you......please.....if you have nothing to do, don''t do it here.

[dmhphils]

Oh, the fallen nature of human beings, trapped in a spinning wheel of self-preservation. Who will awaken them from this nightmare.....oh, the blood, the blood on their hands.

Cain slew Abel, and the spinning just keeps going and going. Oh, the pretense of goodness is charming at first, but behind the back comes the dagger, and then again the blood.

It is the curse of mankind you know, from which there is only one escape. No, I shall not mention it here and now, but only when the waters begin to rise and your feet leave your solid ground, and your heart begins to tremble.....only then will your ears open, but for many, too late.

[patriotic9]

Why shouldn''t we help Arabs in the destruction of ISRAEL far away from the CONCENTRATION CAMPS in GERMANY to enjoy OIL in cheaper prices?

Why should we sacrifise UNHOLY LAND UNITED STATES, GOD-NEGLECTED AMERICAN MONEY and GOD-NEGLECTED AMERICAN LIVES for the protection of NON-AMERICAN HOLY LAND ISRAEL far away from the CONCENTRATION CAMPS IN GERMANY and GOD-CHOSEN NON-AMERICANS to buy HATRED, TERRORISM and 9/11 against our nation?

Because CHRISTIANITY is PSYCHOSIS and CHRISTIANS are PSYCHOTICS!!!!

[notblue]

knowone is more skillfull at ignoring TRUE facts than the leftwing in this country. The daily "facts" spewed on the leftwing blogs are based on fantasy and shameless outright fabrication, unfortunately there are enough idiots in this country blinded and motivated by hatred and ideology to believe these lies.

[notblue]

Prinzowales and Grazingoat= Terrorist propogandists, you people have less credibillity than the hated Bush! But you continue to be great comedy, true entertainment, keep up the good work.

[grazinggoat]

The former President of Italy and former head of intelligence in Italy has come out and openly said what everyone with any sense has known for a long time--The Mossad and CIA ran the 9-11 false flag operation against the US. Its time for the animal in the White House to be impeached and removed from office. He has subverted the Constitution. He has committed treason by aiding and abetting an act of war against the United States. He has lied to Congress and to the People to wage a war of aggression against foreign nations in violation of international treaty and the Nuremberg Principles.

Down with the Traitor! Down with the Bush Regime!
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Posted by Prinzowhales at 05:13 PM : Dec 04, 2007

-Prinzowhales, WOW!, this is great news. Actually everybody knew it'' except the Dumb Neo-Cons who still DON''T WANT to believe what everyone knows. Those who worship the Walking-Liar, because he feeds them with lies they addictedly need to hear for their survival.

[kennedy7955]

With Bush''s record and the CIA''s record who knows what to believe. I think the CIA and Bush should switch to the time tested method to find the truth, the magic 8 ball.