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Russia Skeptical About Iran Announcement
munaeem | 10 April, 2007 07:38
Iran said Monday it has begun operating 3,000 centrifuges - nearly 10 times the previously known number. Russia said it had not received confirmation of the claim.
Iranian officials said on Monday Iran had started injecting gas into a batch of 3,000 atomic centrifuges being installed at Natanz. They gave no figures for the number of machines set up and running, saying U.N. inspectors would confirm numbers.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said in a statement.
"We haven't got a confirmation yet that they have actually begun uranium enrichment at the new cascades,'' of centrifuges."
Iran's enrichment activity, until now at an experimental level, has drawn international criticism, including from Russia, its closest big power ally. The U.N. Security Council has slapped sanctions on Iran for not stopping the work.
Russia has developed close economic ties with Iran and is building its first nuclear power plant in the southern port of Bushehr.
Tensions over the nuclear row have underpinned oil prices and helped them higher on Tuesday towards $62 a barrel.
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