海角大神

鈥� A daily summary of global reports on security issues.

Both the US and Israel, who are leading the international community鈥檚 effort to block Iran鈥檚 nuclear progress, have said that Iran鈥檚 most recent announcement of a 鈥渘uclear breakthrough鈥� is inflated.

Iran鈥檚 Press TV reported yesterday that 3,000 new centrifuges had been installed at the main enrichment site of Natanz and that the country had loaded domestically produced nuclear fuel rods into its medical research reactor, Bloomberg reports. The station broadcast photos of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad overseeing the loading of the fuel rod, according to the Associated Press.

鈥淥ur view on this is that it鈥檚 not terribly new and it鈥檚 not terribly impressive,鈥� State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said in Washington yesterday, describing the announcement as 鈥渉yped,鈥� according to Bloomberg.聽Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak called the presentation a 鈥渟how,鈥� saying that Iran wants its nuclear program to seem 鈥渋rreversible,鈥� according to Associated Press. 鈥淚ran is trying to "make it seem ... like the point of no return is already behind them, which is not the case," Mr. Barak said.

Israel's dismissals come as a surprise after months of dire Israeli warnings about Iran鈥檚 nuclear progress. Israel, the US, and much of Europe believe Iran is working toward a nuclear weapon 鈥� which Tehran has denied 鈥� and Israel has been the most strident voice.

Dennis Ross, until recently one of President Obama鈥檚 chief advisers on the Middle East, said that the Press TV report was 鈥渕ore symbolism than anything else鈥� and an effort to prove that punishing US and EU sanctions are having little effect.

David Albright, a physicist and former UN weapons inspector in Iraq, told Bloomberg that the fuel rods are not difficult to produce and don鈥檛 have military implications. Only a 鈥渉andful鈥� of countries 鈥� the US among them 鈥� can build the fuel plates needed for the reactor, Iranian officials said.

Yesterday, Iran also sent a letter to EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton announcing that it was ready to resume talks, accepting an offer made in October. Agence France-Presse reports that the letter was likely intended to coincide with the nuclear announcement.

AFP also noted that Iran's state-run media claimed that the nuclear progress gave Iran " 'the upper hand' in its future negotiations with the P5+1," a reference to the five veto-wielding members of the UN Security Council plus Germany.

The New York Times notes that the international community is watching Iran closely for signs of the effect that sanctions are having. It reported that this week鈥檚 events 鈥� on top of the nuclear announcements, Iran is suspected of attempting to assassinate Israelis abroad 鈥� 鈥渟uggest that Iranian leaders are responding frantically, and with increasing unpredictability, to the tightening of sanctions by the West.鈥�