To think a member of the global community as upstanding as the Islamic Republic of Iran might have a credibility problem. One has to wonder if this reality could’ve been discovered sooner.
Perhaps we should’ve been tipped of by the fact Iran regularly sponsors terrorism; rigs elections to benefit hardline incumbents; beats women for not wearing the prescribed clothing; executes citizens for simply being gay; hides nuclear facilities from the international nuclear watchdog agency; and its leaders deny the Holocaust while calling for the extermination of the Jews and destruction of Israel.
If only there was a clearer sign that this country might not be the most trustworthy and honest it could be.
According to the Iranians, funds were allocated to launch the project in the second half of 2007 — but the Islamic Republic did not notify the agency about the facility’s existence until September 2009. That delayed declaration, the IAEA politely noted, “reduces the level of confidence in the absence of other nuclear facilities under construction and gives rise to questions about whether there were any other nuclear facilities not declared to the agency,” the report said.
In other words, a pattern of secrecy persists when it comes to Iran’s nuclear ambitions. And unless Tehran shifts gears, “the Agency will not be in a position to provide credible assurance about the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities in Iran.”
Via Allahpundit, The New York Times actually points out that Iran must have additional, hidden facilities. Without them the site at Qom would be useless, and there’s serious doubt that the regime built and previously hid a nuclear facility the sole purpose of which is to look pretty.
by Stephan Tawney on Mon, Nov 16, 2009