Post by depletedreasons on Jun 23, 2008 1:01:37 GMT -5
Greece Denies Hostility toward Iran
TEHRAN (FNA)- Greece says its Military maneuvers with Israel were not hostile.
The Greek defense ministry has issued a statement, reassuring that its joint military maneuver with Israel was by no means hostile, a press tv report said. In the first week of June, 100 Israeli F-16 and F-15 fighters reportedly took part in an exercise over the eastern Mediterranean and Greece, which was interpreted as a dress rehearsal for a possible attack on Iran's nuclear installations.
The statement by the Greek defense minister stated that the recent military maneuvers were part of regular military training sessions carried out within the framework of Greek-Israeli military cooperation and were by no means hostile toward any nation.
In their alleged exercise, the Israeli jets flew a range of more than 900 miles, roughly the distance from Israeli airfields to an Iranian nuclear enrichment facility in the central Iranian city of Natanz, prompting world media to question Israel's motives. In response to the threat posed by Israel, senior Iranian commander Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari, has said that the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps is equipped with cutting-edge military possibilities to counter any offense against the Islamic Republic.
Israel has accused Iran of 'producing bomb-grade uranium' on many occasions, repeatedly threatening the country with war. This is while Israel bars inspectors from competent international organizations, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in particular, to visit its nuclear facilities. As the only nuclear-armed country in the Middle East, Israel is believed to possess a nuclear arsenal of 200-400 warheads.
Israel and its close ally the United States accuse Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, while they have never presented any corroborative document to substantiate their allegations. Iran vehemently denies the charges, insisting that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only. Tehran stresses that the country has always pursued a civilian path to provide power to the growing number of Iranian population, whose fossil fuel would eventually run dry.
After Iran answered outstanding questions of the International Atomic Energy Agency about the history of its past nuclear activities, Tehran said that it will only negotiate with the UN nuclear watchdog from then on. The Islamic Republic has also repeatedly stressed that it considers its nuclear case closed as it has come clean of IAEA's questions and suspicions about its past nuclear activities.
Yet, the United States has remained at loggerheads with Iran over the independent and home-grown nature of Tehran's nuclear technology, which gives the Islamic Republic the potential to turn into a world power and a role model for other third-world countries. Washington has laid much pressure on Iran to make it give up the most sensitive and advanced part of the technology, which is uranium enrichment, a process used for producing nuclear fuel for power plants. Tel Aviv and Washington have recently intensified their threats to launch military action against Iran to make Tehran drop what they allege to be a non-peaceful nuclear program, while a recent report by 16 US intelligence bodies endorsed the civilian nature of Iran's programs.
Following the US National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) and similar reports by the IAEA head - one in November and the other one in February - which praised Iran's truthfulness about key aspects of its past nuclear activities and announced settlement of outstanding issues with Tehran, any effort to impose further sanctions or launch military attack on Iran seems to be completely irrational. The February report by the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, praised Iran's cooperation in clearing up all of the past questions over its nuclear program, vindicating Iran's nuclear program and leaving no justification for any new UN sanctions.
Tehran says it wants to enrich uranium merely for civilian purposes, including generation of electricity, a claim substantiated by the NIE and IAEA reports. Iran has also insisted that it would continue enriching uranium because it needs to provide fuel to a 300-megawatt light-water reactor it is building in the southwestern town of Darkhoveyn as well as its first nuclear power plant in the southern port city of Bushehr.
Many world nations have called the UN Security Council pressure unjustified, especially in the wake of recent IAEA reports saying Iran had increased cooperation with the agency. US President George W. Bush finished a tour of the Middle East in winter to gain the consensus of his Arab allies to unite against Iran.
But hosting officials of the regional nations dismissed Bush's allegations, describing Tehran as a good friend of their countries. Bush's attempt to rally international pressure against Iran has lost steam due to the growing international vigilance, specially following the latest IAEA and US intelligence reports.
english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8704020669
TEHRAN (FNA)- Greece says its Military maneuvers with Israel were not hostile.
The Greek defense ministry has issued a statement, reassuring that its joint military maneuver with Israel was by no means hostile, a press tv report said. In the first week of June, 100 Israeli F-16 and F-15 fighters reportedly took part in an exercise over the eastern Mediterranean and Greece, which was interpreted as a dress rehearsal for a possible attack on Iran's nuclear installations.
The statement by the Greek defense minister stated that the recent military maneuvers were part of regular military training sessions carried out within the framework of Greek-Israeli military cooperation and were by no means hostile toward any nation.
In their alleged exercise, the Israeli jets flew a range of more than 900 miles, roughly the distance from Israeli airfields to an Iranian nuclear enrichment facility in the central Iranian city of Natanz, prompting world media to question Israel's motives. In response to the threat posed by Israel, senior Iranian commander Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari, has said that the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps is equipped with cutting-edge military possibilities to counter any offense against the Islamic Republic.
Israel has accused Iran of 'producing bomb-grade uranium' on many occasions, repeatedly threatening the country with war. This is while Israel bars inspectors from competent international organizations, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in particular, to visit its nuclear facilities. As the only nuclear-armed country in the Middle East, Israel is believed to possess a nuclear arsenal of 200-400 warheads.
Israel and its close ally the United States accuse Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, while they have never presented any corroborative document to substantiate their allegations. Iran vehemently denies the charges, insisting that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only. Tehran stresses that the country has always pursued a civilian path to provide power to the growing number of Iranian population, whose fossil fuel would eventually run dry.
After Iran answered outstanding questions of the International Atomic Energy Agency about the history of its past nuclear activities, Tehran said that it will only negotiate with the UN nuclear watchdog from then on. The Islamic Republic has also repeatedly stressed that it considers its nuclear case closed as it has come clean of IAEA's questions and suspicions about its past nuclear activities.
Yet, the United States has remained at loggerheads with Iran over the independent and home-grown nature of Tehran's nuclear technology, which gives the Islamic Republic the potential to turn into a world power and a role model for other third-world countries. Washington has laid much pressure on Iran to make it give up the most sensitive and advanced part of the technology, which is uranium enrichment, a process used for producing nuclear fuel for power plants. Tel Aviv and Washington have recently intensified their threats to launch military action against Iran to make Tehran drop what they allege to be a non-peaceful nuclear program, while a recent report by 16 US intelligence bodies endorsed the civilian nature of Iran's programs.
Following the US National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) and similar reports by the IAEA head - one in November and the other one in February - which praised Iran's truthfulness about key aspects of its past nuclear activities and announced settlement of outstanding issues with Tehran, any effort to impose further sanctions or launch military attack on Iran seems to be completely irrational. The February report by the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, praised Iran's cooperation in clearing up all of the past questions over its nuclear program, vindicating Iran's nuclear program and leaving no justification for any new UN sanctions.
Tehran says it wants to enrich uranium merely for civilian purposes, including generation of electricity, a claim substantiated by the NIE and IAEA reports. Iran has also insisted that it would continue enriching uranium because it needs to provide fuel to a 300-megawatt light-water reactor it is building in the southwestern town of Darkhoveyn as well as its first nuclear power plant in the southern port city of Bushehr.
Many world nations have called the UN Security Council pressure unjustified, especially in the wake of recent IAEA reports saying Iran had increased cooperation with the agency. US President George W. Bush finished a tour of the Middle East in winter to gain the consensus of his Arab allies to unite against Iran.
But hosting officials of the regional nations dismissed Bush's allegations, describing Tehran as a good friend of their countries. Bush's attempt to rally international pressure against Iran has lost steam due to the growing international vigilance, specially following the latest IAEA and US intelligence reports.
english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8704020669