The United States arms control chief has given warning that Iran is "very close to the point of no return" in acquiring the technological expertise to make a nuclear weapon. "In terms of activities on the ground in Iran, it is fair to say that the Iranians have put both feet on the accelerator," said Robert Joseph, the senior US State Department official responsible for countering nuclear proliferation.His comments, which come as the United Nations Security Council prepares to meet to discuss the crisis this week, indicate that Washington believes that the stakes are rising rapidly in the West's confrontation with the Islamic republic. Earlier this month, Teheran claimed to have enriched uranium for the nuclear fuel cycle. It has pushed ahead with its programme while taking advantage of a diplomatic stand-off between Moscow and Washington over possible UN sanctions.
Iran is following tactics outlined by its former chief nuclear negotiator in comments to clerics and academics previously unreported in the West. Hassan Rowhani made clear that Iran's goal was to present the world with a fait accompli over its nuclear ambitions. "If, one day, we are able to complete the fuel cycle and the world sees that it has no choice, that we do possess the technology, then the situation will be different," he told the Supreme Cultural Revolution Council. "The world did not want Pakistan to have an atomic bomb or Brazil to have the fuel cycle, but Pakistan built its bomb and Brazil has its fuel cycle."