Iran vows to speed uranium program

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By Cheryl K. Chumley

The Washington Times

Thursday, January 31, 2013

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Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speaks in the parliament in Tehran on Wednesday, ... more >

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Defiant Iran vowed Thursday to speed up its uranium enrichment program and told International Atomic Energy Agency officials it will install thousands more centrifuges at its Natanz plant.

According to Radio Free Europe, that means Iran could refine uranium twice as fast -- or faster -- than it presently can.

Tehran insists its enrichment program is for peaceful energy purposes only. International thought holds to the idea Iran is aggressively seeking nuclear weapons.

Unverified reports of an explosion at Iran's Fordow nuclear enrichment site surfaced three days ago.

Fordow, located near Qom, started producing uranium that was highly enriched -- at 20 percent purity compared with the maximum 5 percent that's needed for energy -- in 2011, furthering suspicions of Iran's drive for nuclear weapon development, Reuters reported.

Iran denied the explosion at Fordow.

"The false news of an explosion at Fordow is Western propaganda ahead of nuclear negotiations to influence their process and outcome," said a state news report cited in Reuters.

About the Author

Cheryl K. Chumley

Cheryl Chumley is a continuous news writer for The Washington Times. Previously, she was part of the start-up team for The Washington Times’ digital aggregation product, Times247. She’s also a 2008-2009 Robert Novak journalism fellow with The Phillips Foundation. She can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.