Schooling Iran's atom squad

Abstract

Iran has taken care to build its nuclear program around indigenous capabilities, including new universities where a new generation of science students is training.

Iran as a ‘pariah’ nuclear aspirant

“…Both are adamant that Iran has a right to the 'peaceful uses' of nuclear technology, while both have also begun to view a nuclear weapons capability as a viable means through which to deter US, and perhaps Israeli, threats to Iran's security (Takeyh 2003, 53Á54). Although Iran's nuclear program accelerated under the reformist stewardship of President Khatami and not the radicals, Tehran's position nonetheless hardened after Ahmadinejad's election in 2005, as 'the radicals are less patient and willing to subject Iran to the dictates of what they see as a fundamentally unfair set of preconditions' (Ansari 2007, 47Á48;Boureston and Ferguson 2004). This tendency was clearly in evidence in Ahmadinejad's address to the United Nations General Assembly in 2005, in which he referred to the inequity of the existing nuclear order and the perceived double standards of the USA and its allies ('Full Text' 2005).…”

Sanctioning Iran

“…It is particularly important in view of the fact that the US and some other Western states have played crucial role in Iran's nuclear programme and now they are making fuss about it. It is interesting to note that Iran's nuclear programme was launched in 1950s with the US help under Atoms for Peace programme (US Department of State 1957; also see Boureston and Ferguson 2004). Furthermore, the Iranian nuclear programme is not unique to the current Islamist regime.…”

The Impact of Iran's Nuclearization on Israel

“…Iran's nuclear quest was initiated with the 1957 nuclear cooperation agreement it signed with its then-ally, the United States. 8 Ten years later, Iran bought a small, fivemegawatt reactor meant for its research program at the Amirabad Technical College. By 1974, the shah of Iran had created the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) and announced plans to build 23 nuclear power plants over the next 20 years.…”

“…10 The nuclear project was largely abandoned until 1984, when Iran began recruiting countries such as India, Pakistan, China, the Soviet Union and West Germany to be its new mentors. 11 The current status of Iran's nuclear program is difficult to assess. By 2002, at least six sites had been identified at which nuclear-related activities were known to be taking place.…”

“…The government has expended a great many resources toward training an indigenous cadre of scientists and engineers capable of studying, implementing and running all aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle. 15 The completion of the Bushehr plant brought the program an important step closer to independence. Current negotiations with the International Atomic Energy Agency have centered primarily upon Iran's desire to assert control over the final element for which it continues to be dependent upon outside suppliers: enriched uranium.…”