WORLD AT WAR: 4.3.21 - Iran Still Hiding Key Parts of its Nuclear Program, US Trying Bribery Again

Iran Still Hiding Key Parts of its Nuclear Program, US Trying Bribery Again- by Con Coughlin - https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/17214/iran-hiding-nuclear-program With the Biden administration seemingly keen to recommence negotiations with Tehran over its nuclear program, fresh evidence is emerging that Iran's regime is up to itsold tricks by attempting to conceal key elements of the program from UN inspectors. Iran has a long and undistinguished history of seeking to conceal the existence of key elements of its nuclear program dating back to 2002, when a group of Iranian dissidentsfirst revealed the existence of the Natanz nuclear enrichment site. Enrichment is a crucial process in producing weapons-grade nuclear material, and the fact that Iran managed to build the massive underground facility about 100 miles tothe south of Tehran in secret was the first major evidence that the regime was developing nuclear weapons. Since then there have been many similar instances of Iran seeking to conceal the existence of key facilities from the outside world, such as the Fordow facility which wasconstructed during the late 2000s under a mountain to protect it from attack. Now evidence has emerged that, with the Biden administration indicating that it wants to resume negotiations with Tehran on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA),the nuclear deal negotiated by former US President Barack Obama, Iran has resumed its attempts to conceal vital components from UN inspection teams. According to recent Western intelligence reports, the equipment Iran is trying to conceal includes machinery, pumps and spare parts for centrifuges, the sophisticated machinesused for enriching uranium to weapons grade. In addition, materials such as carbon fiber, which can be used in the production of advanced centrifuges, are also being stored at secret sites in Iran administered by theIslamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which has overall responsibility for Iran's nuclear program. Intelligence officials believe the material, which is supposed to be declared to UN inspectors under the terms of JCPOA, is being stored in 75 shipping containers, whichare regularly transported around the country to sites administered by the Atomic Energy Agency of Iran (AEOI). Satellite intelligence images show that at least some of the containers have been stored at the AEOI's uranium conversion facility at Isfahan. The latest evidence that Iran is continuing to conceal vital elements of its nuclear program from the outside world suggest that, even if there is a resumption of negotiationson Tehran's nuclear program, the regime has little genuine interest in complying with the terms of any future deal. It also lends weight to concerns that Iran has already resumed work on its nuclear weapons program, which US intelligence officials say was in existence until at least 2003,and that the regime has continued to retain key elements of the program in storage despite signing the JCPOA in 2015. In 2018, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in an address to the UN General Assembly, accused Iran of storing key elements of its nuclear program at secret locationsin Tehran. One of the biggest criticisms of the 2015 deal is that it did not require Iran to provide an explanation for traces of weapons grade uranium that were discovered at numeroussites during routine inspections by UN officials, as well as providing details of other aspects of the nuclear weapons program, such as the development of ballistic missiles and detonators for nuclear warheads. These were some of the reasons that prompted the Trump administration to withdraw from the nuclear deal in 2018 and reimpose punitive sanctions against Tehran. Iran has responded by intensifying its non-compliance with the JCPOA, to the extent that the ayatollahs recently announced that they were increasing their uranium stockpileswhile increasing the enrichment process to 20 percent, which far exceeds the 3.67 percent limit stipulated by the accord, and is a small technical step away from producing weapons-grade material. In another provocative move, Iran's conservative-dominated parliament has ordered the government to start limiting some inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA), the UN-sponsored body responsible for monitoring Iran's nuclear activities. The move by the Iranian parliament comes after the IAEA published a report revealing that last summer, inspectors found uranium particles at two Iranian nuclear sites thatIran tried to block access to. The Biden administration has repeatedly said it will return to the nuclear deal if Iran first returns to compliance with the JCPOA. Iran demands the US lift sanctions first,putting the two sides at a stalemate. The stand-off between Washington and Tehran is likely to continue for as long as Iran demonstrates that it has no genuine interest in ending its quest for nuclear weapons. The Biden Administration nevertheless looks about to try the bribery route yet again -- presumably with the same result as before. Recently, South Korea agreed to release$7 billion in "frozen assets" to Iran "following consultations with the United States." The Biden Administration has also apparently been trying to sidestep legally-required congressional approval to funnel more money to Iran and other dictatorships througha new International Monetary Fund program, "special drawing rights" (SDRs). Through them, Iran would receive an additional $4.5 billion, usable in other currencies. According to the Wall Street Journal, which referred to the program as "Special Dollars forDictators", Iran's leadership will most likely use these newfound billions to strengthen domestic repression, to intensify regional adventurism -- Iran's proxy Houthi rebels in Yemen have already targeted a "large Saudi oil field" -- and to escalate theirnuclear program still further. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Iran�s Fait Accompli - By Matt Ward - https://www.raptureready.com/2021/04/01/irans-fait-accompli-by-matt-ward/ While the world has been distracted by Coronavirus, Iran has been busy making its moves. What a mere twelve months ago would have been big front-page news all across theworld now barely even registers in the mainstream news media at all. Yet, despite the lack of coverage, Iran seems to be rapidly approaching the point of acquiring a viable nuclear weapon. Shockingly, nobody in the mainstream media even seems to care. At this writing, it is widely assumed that Iran is now mere weeks away from nuclear breakout status. If true, this is a crisis that is very soon going to come to a head. Jake Sullivan, White House national security advisor, referred to Iran�s forthcoming nuclear breakout status as a �critical early priority� for the Biden administration.Sullivan went on to state that this issue could well become an �escalating nuclear crisis as they move closer to having enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon.� As a show of force and possibly intention, US B-52 nuclear bombers have been flying sorties over the Gulf and right up to the border of the Islamic Republic, clearly signpostingWestern intent should the revived nuclear deal negotiations fail. French President Emmanuel Macron has described how the international community has but a �very short time� to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons. But there is a problem with all this hard talk. Iran, it would seem, is not buying this show of strength, and they are not afraid. The uncomfortable reality is that theysimply do not seem to fear President Joe Biden, as they once feared President Donald Trump. The inauguration of a new president, rather than put them on notice and high alert, seems to have emboldened them. In the face of all the tacit threats from America and Europe, Iran remains belligerent. The Islamic Republic has thus far refused point-blank to come back to the negotiationtable for talks, something Joe Biden put so much faith in during Obama�s final term. Tehran has flatly ruled out any amendments to the nuclear accord, describing the document the Biden administration believes can bring Iran back in line as �non-negotiable.� Before they have even begun, the negotiations are dead in the water. So entrenched and emboldened is Iran that even before any conversation is had, before they even sit down at the table, Tehran wants the harsh sanctions the United Stateshas imposed on them previously for violating the original terms of the nuclear deal, completely removed. To do so would essentially reward the Iranians for breaking the terms of the original nuclear accord and is something the West is understandably very reluctant to do. Buttime is against the West, just as time is against little Israel. On this present course, if nobody does something soon, the issue will become a fait accompli � Iran will have a viable nuclear weapon. Even the United Nations nuclear watchdog has conceded that the Iranian nuclear weapons program is back in full swing, revealing that a second cascade of advanced IR-2m centrifugesfor enriching uranium has once again begun working at Iran�s underground Natanz facility. They also believe there is a third cluster just waiting to go. The Iranians have openly admitted that they have enriched Uranium to the critical 20% level at their Fordow plant, still a large level below the 90% enrichment requiredfor a nuclear weapon, but a significant step in that direction nonetheless. The reason for this is that the time and processes involved in enriching uranium to 20% are much longer and more difficult than that of taking it from 20% enrichment up to 90%. Thiscan be achieved in a relatively short period of time. Most surprisingly, Iran has been really quite frank and open about these violations. Perhaps this is because Iran no longer fears the reaction of the United States underits current presidential leadership, as it clearly did under its previous incumbent. At this point, Israel is grappling with a huge number of uncertainties regarding Iran and its nuclear program and the wider geopolitical environment. It is at best unclearto even the most informed Iran pundit just how advanced Iran�s nuclear program now is, or exactly how close they may be to a feasible weapon. It�s all about best estimates, and all the best estimates seem to conclude that Iran is getting very, very close. Iran is clearly making rapid progress towards nuclear breakout status. It is also widely agreed that Iran would not go for nuclear breakout status unless they had enoughmaterial to produce 3-5 viable weapons. They just won�t take the risk for one weapon, as the US or Israel would simply destroy it, and all their efforts would be in vain. Israel or the United States would think twice before attacking Iran if they knew there were five weapons, not just one. So, this rush to breakout status is likely not forjust one weapon but multiple warheads. As we speak, the IDF is actively preparing to take on Iran�s nuclear weapons program � even if it has to do it alone. The United States, however, would be mistaken to thinkthat this was an issue critical to Israel only. The world is watching new United States President Joe Biden, and just like Iran has done, rulers like Vladimir Putin of Russia, Xi Jinping of China, and North Korea�s Kim Jong-un are weighing Joe Biden and measuringhim. Whether Biden will be found wanting will be directly determined by the outcome of this issue, not by his response to Coronavirus, and may well determine the Biden administration�sinternational standing during the rest of his term. Time is not on Israel�s side. Israeli Defense Force chief of staff Lt. General Aviv Kochavi issued his own blunt assessment of the state of play: �I have instructed theIsraeli Defense Forces to prepare a number of operational plans, in addition to those already in place.� So significant is Lt Gen. Kochavi�s concerns over Iran�s imminent nuclear breakout status that these comments were entirely unsanctioned and from his own initiative, somethinghe himself was sanctioned for. Israel�s hand is being forced, and it is increasingly likely that if they are forced to act, they will do so alone. Iran knows this. Last week Iranian Defense Minister AmirHatami issued an ominous threat to raze Tel Aviv and Haifa �to the ground� should Israel launch any pre-emptive action against Iran or its nuclear program. It seems evident from President Biden�s first few months in power that he would likely not be willing to overtly engage the Iranians in direct military intervention, especiallyif side by side with Israel. To do so would be to enrage a great portion of his base at home, to whom he is so beholden. On February 2nd, Senior Israeli Minister Tzachi Hanegdi commented that in his opinion, he cannot see the Americans agreeing to take on such a military initiative, leavingIsrael to face this growing threat alone. Time is clearly running out. Whether Israel�s hand will be forced or not remains to be seen. If Israel and the West are not careful, though, we will all wake up one morningand an Iranian nuclear weapon will have become a fait accompli. The drumbeats of war are getting louder and louder. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ukrainian Troops Are Being Fired Upon By Grenade Launchers And MachineGuns As More Russian Forces Race Toward The Border - by Michael Snyder - http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/ukrainian-troops-are-being-fired-upon-by-grenade-launchers-and-machine-guns-as-more-russian-forces-race-toward-the-border/ Could this be the spark that causes World War 3 to erupt? At this hour, Russian and Ukrainian military forces continue to rush toward the conflict zone, and to say thatthings are �tense� in the region would be a tremendous understatement. As I discussed yesterday, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed Decree No. 117/2021 on March 24th, it was essentially a declaration of war against Russia. Since that time,Russian forces have been massing along the borders in numbers that we have never seen before. Video after video of Russian tanks, military vehicles and troops being moved toward the conflict zone have been posted on social media, and the Ukrainians have respondedby making similar moves. But if the Russians launch a full-blown invasion, the Ukrainians will be totally outmatched, and they will ask the United States and NATO to intervene. Since March 24th, there have been hundreds of ceasefire violations, but the ceasefire cannot be violated any longer because it officially expired on April 1st. On Thursday, there were multiple reports of Ukrainian forces taking direct fire. This was not reported by anyone in the corporate media in the United States, and so I hadto go to a Ukrainian source to find out exactly what is going on. The following is an English translation of a report that was posted on the official website of the Ukrainian military� In the area of ​​responsibility of the operational and tactical group �East�, near the settlements of SAND and WATER, in the Azov Sea, the occupiers opened fire with grenadelaunchers of various systems, large-caliber machine guns and small arms. In the area of ​​responsibility of the operational and tactical group �North�, near the settlements of SVITLODARSKE, LUHANSKE and ZOLOTE-4, the invaders fired at our positionswith automatic machine-gun and hand-held anti-tank grenade launchers, large-caliber machine guns and machine guns. From this point forward, there will probably be regular reports of both sides firing on one another. But will the conflict soon become much larger than that? I think that it is a really bad sign that the separatists in eastern Ukraine just announced that those born from 1994 to 2003 will start to be conscripted for military service. In addition, the EU is accusing Russia of initiating �a conscription campaign in the Crimea peninsula�� The European Union said Russia had launched a conscription campaign in the Crimea peninsula in a move that broke international law. The EU said in a statement: �Today, the Russian Federation has launched yet another conscription campaign in the illegally-annexed Autonomous Republic of Crimea and thecity of Sevastopol to draft residents of the peninsula in the Russian Federation Armed Forces.� These are very alarming developments, because they indicate that the Russians and the separatists in eastern Ukraine believe that an extended military conflict is approaching. Of course the Russians wouldn�t actually need any new conscripts in order to defeat Ukraine. The Russian military is vastly superior to the Ukrainian military, and UkrainianCommander-in-Chief Ruslan Khomchak believes that there are more than 32,000 Russian troops currently in Crimea in addition to the 28,000 separatist troops in eastern Ukraine� Khomchak had also said that Russia has around 32,700 military personnel in Crimea, at present. Since annexing the territory in 2014, the Kremlin has significantly expandedits military presence there to include air, naval, and ground-based assets, including anti-ship cruise missile and surface-to-air missile batteries. Russia also oversees some 28,000 personnel in �separatist� units in areas of eastern Ukraine known collectively as the Donbass who have been fighting the government in Kyivsince 2015. Though the Kremlin denies it, the evidence is clear that a substantial portion of these forces is simply regular Russian military units deployed on Ukrainian soil. There are also strong links between Russia�s intelligence services and ostensibly �local� forces. When asked why so many troops are being moved toward Ukraine, a Kremlin spokesman said that this �should not bother anyone�� Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov offered a trio of seemingly contradictory dismissals regarding the sudden movement of Russian forces and equipment along its border withUkraine and in Crimea, as well as a mortar attack last week by Russian-backed troops that killed four Ukrainian soldiers for which Kiev blames Russia. �The Russian Federation moves its armed forces within its territory at its own discretion. This should not bother anyone, it poses no threat to anyone,� Peskov told reporterson Thursday morning, according to a translation of his remarks. He also said that Russia feels threatened by what it considers �increased activity of the armed forces of NATO countries� and others that �obliges us to be on the alert.� Ultimately, these troop movements almost certainly never would have happened if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had not signed Decree No. 117/2021. And of course Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky never would have signed Decree No. 117/2021 if he had not been given the green light to do so by the White House. In the end, this is a game of chess between the Biden administration and the Kremlin, and one false move could plunge us into World War 3. Unfortunately, the rhetoric on both sides just continues to escalate. On Thursday, the U.S. State Department once again accused the Russians of being �aggressive�� Following Lavrov and Peskov�s statements, U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price warned Moscow against �intimidating� Ukraine. �We�re absolutely concerned by recent escalations of Russian aggressive and provocative actions in eastern Ukraine,� Ned Price told reporters. �What we would object to are aggressive actions that have an intent of intimidating, of threatening, our partner Ukraine.� And new Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is the latest official to publicly pledge U.S. support for Ukraine� Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke to Ukraine�s minister of defense on the phone Thursday to express �unwavering U.S. support for Ukraine�s sovereignty� and to condemnRussian aggression in the country. But if the Russians actually launched a full scale ground invasion of Ukraine, there would be nothing the U.S. could do to stop it. Of course the U.S. could decide to strike back militarily in other ways, and that could set off a chain reaction which could result in global war. The corporate media in the United States loved to bash the Trump administration, but while Trump was in the White House there was never a threat that World War 3 was aboutto start. Unfortunately, the warmongers in the Biden administration are now running the show. They seem to think that they can push the Russians around, but if they miscalculate evenjust a little bit it could have disastrous consequences for all of us. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- VISIT: PROPHECY WATCHER WEEKLY NEWS: HTTP://PROPHECY-WATCHER-WEEKLY-NEWS.BLOGSPOT.COM