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Iran: French Officials Report Advanced Iranian Nuclear Program French officials completed a classified report in May that claims that Iran is close to developing a nuclear weapon, the Los Angeles Times reported today. The report calls on other nations to practice “the most serious vigilance on their exports to Iran and Iranian front companies.” Iranian officials have also been receiving extensive assistance from foreign experts, according to the Times. North Korean scientists have been working in Iran, and Iranian officials reportedly established a resort on the Caspian Sea for their exclusive use, according to sources in the country and foreign intelligence agencies. Abdul Qadeer Khan, a Pakistani nuclear scientist, has also been assisting the Iranian program, according to the Times. “Pakistan’s role was bigger from the beginning than we thought,” said a Middle Eastern intelligence official. Russia has been working with Iran to build a nuclear reactor at Bushehr. Iran, however, is also building a heavy-water reactor that is more likely to be used in weapons development. Gholamreza Aghazadeh, the president of Iran’s atomic energy agency, said the heavy-water reactor is for research purposes and could be used to make radioisotopes for medical applications. Experts, however, said the reactor causes concerns. “For Iran, there is no justification whatsoever to have a heavy-water plant,” said Gary Samore, director of nonproliferation programs at London’s International Institute for Strategic Studies and a former Clinton administration security official. A senior U.N. official said “the heavy-water plant sticks out like a sore thumb” (Douglas Frantz, Los Angeles Times, Aug. 4).
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