How incredible! How incredibly convenient! It seems the National Intelligence Estimate has been declassified and guess what - NIE Report: Iran Halted Nuclear Weapons Program Years Ago.
ABC News’ Martha Raddatz, Jonathan Karl, Luis Martinez and Kirit Radia Report: In a stunning reversal of Bush administration conventional wisdom, a new assessment by U.S. intelligence agencies concludes Iran shelved it’s nuclear weapons program over four years ago.
“We judge with high confidence that in fall 2003, Tehran halted its nuclear weapons program,†reads a declassified version of the National Intelligence Estimate key findings. “We judge with moderate confidence that the earliest possible date Iran would be technically capable of producing enough highly enriched uranium (HEU) for a weapon is late 2009.â€
The entire NIE report will remain classified, however the office of the Director of National Intelligence released a declassified version of the key findings that can be read HERE.
Did I mention how convenient this is at this particular moment in time? The Iranians have shelved their uranium enrichment program, but they will still be capable of enriching uranium in a couple of years. This report has a little something for everyone.
Perhaps someone should inform Iranian President Amadinnerjacket that his program has been shelved. He doesn’t seem to know it. Just in the last month …. Iran Graphically Illustrates Their Threats Against America and Israel and he announced that Iran Produces Nuclear Fuel Pellets of Enriched Uranium.
Here is the White House reaction.
Samson Blinded sees this as an arranged peace deal between the United States and Iran.
According to the US-Iran peace deal, Iran winded down its support for Iraqi guerrillas, and the US guaranteed it won’t bomb the Iranian nuclear facilities. Iran made good on its promise, and allowed the US Administration a tactical PR victory of reduced casualties in Iraq. The US Administration waited with fulfilling its part of the game until after the Annapolis peace show. Refusing to attack Iran over its nuclear program earlier would have likely derailed Israeli commitment to the Annapolis peace parley.
He goes on to state that the US sold Israeli security for Iranian assistance in Iraq. I’m not sure about that or to what extent that might or might not be. There are still Iranian bombs killing Americans (and Iraqis) in Iraq as well as in Afghanistan. Their interference in Iraq and Afghanistan and their supplying troops and weapons to be used against American Soldiers has not changed. So I’m not sure that this is the motive for this sudden turn of events although I can’t argue as to what the motive would be.
I do believe that Christians in the United States will never sell out Israel. The only way that would happen would be if it happened out of sight and under the table so that people didn’t realize what was happening. Unfortunately, that’s how most things happen in politics. Its done deals before the people know about it. Still, it goes against everything that we as Christians believe in to turn against Israel. I just don’t believe that would happen with the knowledge of the people.
AJ Strata is also commenting.
The NIE is quite clear. We know they stopped, we have no intel on whether they are still stopped or not. The reporting that Iran has stopped as of now is not accurate. Here is the scary part – Iran is still processing fuel! They don’t NEED to process fuel for Nuclear Energy. Russia has offered to SELL THEM fuel if they return the spent fuel so it cannot be used to make weapons
Right Wing Nuthouse has a bit more optimism than I am prone to at this point.
For those disposed to disbelieve or reject this NIE, it would be well to remember that if a consensus about something this vital to our security was found among such a fractious, quarrelling, multi-agenda driven group of spooks, you can bet the information it’s based on is pretty solid.
And what’s with this news out of Iran about their nuclear program? How does this all fit into the unexpected news from the NEI? (from NRO)
A French diplomat leaks information about the latest round of EU-Iran nuclear crisis negotiations. He describes the talks a “catastrophe,” says Said Jalili told EU’s Javier Solana that Iran would not honor agreements between Iran and the EU made by former Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani.
Said Jalili, secretary of the Islamic Republic’s Supreme National Security Council: “United Nations Security Council not able to stop Iran’s nuclear program with new resolutions.”
Ahmadinejad: “We have shown that development is possible without U.S. assistance…There is not going to be a third [UN Security Council] Resolution.”
Vice Speaker of the Iranian parliament, Abou-Torabi Fard: “Our victories in the nuclear field, especially after entering the nuclear club, are bigger than our victory in the ‘Sacred Defense’ [the Iran-Iraq war].”
Jalili heads to Moscow
IAEA approves Russian nuclear fuel for Bushehr.
Others are reacting: Michelle Malkin, The Weekly Standard, Hot Air, The Unalienable Right, MacsMind
It must be a big surprise to the EU countries, such as Britain and France, who have been the primary forces behind the talks with Iran for around 4 years now, on the assumption that Iran is looking to gain the ability to create the materials for their own nuclear weapons. Funny how most of the media are leaving that point out in their rush to attempt to discredit Bush and believe Iran.
Why did the Bush administration “lie” and try to provoke a confrontation with Iran in the fist place? And a bigger question is why do the American people let this administration get away with it? Someone needs to be held accountable for their actions. And while were on the subject of “middle east campaigns” I applaud the Congress of these United States for blocking a new spending bill for the war in Iraq, and to have a President hold a press conference for Congress action is just childish. I’ll be glad to see this administration gone when this Presidents term is over.
Read the Quran. It’s okay to make friends with infidels only as long as you need to build up enough power to defeat them. All of the lies of the Musilm world trace right back to Muhammad who said it was okay to deceive your enemies into believing in peace until you got close enough to be able to stick a knife in his back, or powerful enough to overrun them.
THAT brings sense to everything in the Middle East. Yes we are right to be afraid of Iran having nuclear weapons.
Iran is Still a Threat…
It amazes me that the Liberals, who have been saying for years that our intelligence sources can’t be trusted in the aftermath of the Iraq invasion, have now seized the new Iran NIE as absolute gospel. It also seems strange…
There must be more to the US backflip on Iran…
The new US National Intelligence Estimate on Iran, realistically ends any possibility of military action against the Islamist nation and also undermines the movement for tough sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program….
In effect Washington has…