I'm sure that MEMRI is either out of context or cutting quotes to send it's message but, they threw this snippet of an interview El-Baradei gave:

Mohamed ElBaradei: "If Iran wants to turn to the production of nuclear weapons, it must leave the NPT, expel the IAEA inspectors, and then it would need at least... Considering the number of centrifuges and the quantity of uranium Iran has..."

Interviewer: "How much time would it need?"

ElBaradei: "It would need at least six months to one year. Therefore, Iran will not be able to reach the point where we would wake up one morning to an Iran with a nuclear weapon."

Interviewer: "Excuse me, I would like to clarify this for our viewers. If Iran decides today to expel the IAEA from the country, it will need six months..."

ElBaradei: "Or one year, at least..."

Interviewer:"... to produce [nuclear] weapons?"

ElBaradei: "It would need this period to produce a weapon, and to obtain highly-enriched uranium in sufficient quantities for a single nuclear weapon." [...]

Interesting reversal, or progress at any rate. Is it possible that Iran has so many centrifuges that it will be done far before the six to ten years? No. Iran's centrifuges are not on line yet, and their old ones are breaking frequently and ordering parts has been a bitch due mostly to tacit US-international bans on sales to Iran of such equipment.

Anything to get their war on.

tags: iran  iaea  memri  uranium  centrifuges  

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