Alireza Jafarzadeh interview with
Fox News on Iran’s nuclear promises
Fox News Live
November 18, 2004
Is Iran playing a Shell Game
Over its Nuclear Capabilities?
Jon Scott:
Is Iran
playing a shell game over its nuclear capabilities? Not only has our Secretary
of State come out and said Iran is trying to adapt missiles to carry nuclear
weapons, now an exiled Iranian opposition group says Tehran has a secret
uranium enriching facility previously unknown to the international community.
Check out these new exclusive photos we just got hold of. The revelation comes
just a few weeks before Iran’s
atomic program will top the agenda at the United Nations nuclear watchdog
agency. Iran
has strongly denied the existence of such a facility but what can the world do
to make sure Tehran
doesn’t develop a nuclear weapon? For some insight we are joined by Joe Cirincione. He is the director for
non proliferation at the Carnegie Endowment of International Peace and also by
Fox News Foreign Affairs Analyst, Alireza Jafarzadeh. Gentlemen, welcome thanks
for being with us.
Alireza Jafarzadeh: Thank You.
Joe Cirincione: Thank You.
Jon Scott: Joe first of all, is the
international community fairly convinced that Iran
doesn’t already have a nuclear bomb?
Joe Cirincione: Oh, I don’t
think many people believe it has a weapon. The IAEA has just issue a report
that summarized its two years of investigations and concluded that Iran
does not have any detectable nuclear weapons related activity. Iran
does have a very ambitious program that it kept hidden from the world for over
eighteen years to develop what they say is the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
The basic problem is those same technologies that can enrich uranium for fuel
rods one year can be used to enrich uranium for a bomb the next. So we’re
trying to detect whether there are any additional facilities. The IAEA has not
closed the books on this. Are there any additional facilities that we don’t
know about where there is weapons specific work going on?
Jon Scott: Mr. Jafarzadeh, you have some
indication based on these satellite photos that the situation may be even more
dangerous than what the IAEA has been led to believe.
Alireza Jafarzadeh: Exactly, Jon. I think this new
revelation in Paris yesterday of a seven page report by Iran’s main opposition,
the National Council of Resistance shows yet another new site that was hidden
from the international inspectors --it was not declared. This is a site that is
the headquarters for the “Center for Modern Defensive Readiness and
Technology.” It is run by the Ministry of Defense and the Revolutionary Guards.
It has some equipment and facilities that were moved from an older site nearby,
in the general area of Lavizan intended to hide it in this new place. And you
saw these new satellite photos of this new place that was not declared. I think
this is a big challenge both for Iran,
for the IAEA, for the Europeans and the United
States. To quickly get in
an action. For Iran to
accept the inspectors to show them the site. For the IAEA to quickly get
there and for the Europeans to clarify things, because they made it sound as
though they got a great deal.
Jon Scott: Joe Cirincione,
has Iran pulled
the wall over the eyes of some of the Europeans?
Joe Cirincione: We don’t know
yet, what we have is allegations. Now remember, in the run up to the war in Iraq
we had some similar allegations from Iraqi dissident groups about weapons in Iraq,
none of them proved to be true. We had similar allegations from the Secretary
of State, Colin Powell about weapons. None of them proved to be true. And it
doesn’t mean because we falsely called wolf last time that there isn’t really a
wolf this time but we do have a credibility problem in the world. I agree with
the comments just made. The trick is to get Iran
to let inspectors into that site. Let’s wrestle it to the ground right now.
Jon Scott: We are going to have to keep an eye on that
situation. Alireza Jafarzadeh and Joe Cirincione,
thank you.
Alireza Jafarzadeh: Thank you.
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