On April 8, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran paid a very public visit to Natanz, a uranium-enrichment facility - for peaceful nuclear power plants, Iran insists. Photo from New York TimesFrom Washington Post:
U.S. Analysts Also Discount Strength Of Russian Military.
Despite Iran's progress since 2007 toward producing enriched uranium, the State Department's intelligence analysts continue to think that Tehran will not be able to produce weapons-grade material before 2013, according to a newly disclosed congressional document.
The updated assessment, by the State Department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research, emphasizes that the analysis is based on Iran's technical capability and is not a judgment about "when Iran might make any political decision" to produce highly enriched uranium.
Read more ....
My Comment: Hmmmm .... a newly disclosed congressional document is published outlining all of this information. Yeah .... I would love to know who leaked this report and why.
The report on Russia's military is not a surprise .... the report on Iran is questionable. Opinions and conclusions on Iran are being drawn from very limited intelligence .... but (of course) this does not stop the report from making the above decisive conclusions.
If there is a reason for this report's release (in my opinion), it is to quell the growing preparation in Israel to strike at Iran's nuclear facilities. Last week's visit by top U.S. defense officials clearly perturbed them with what they heard ... hence a week later we now have this published report. Coincidence .... hmmmm ....