Iran took another important step towards using nuclear energy for economic development. On Saturday, Iran inaugurated a heavy water plant near the city of Arak in Markazi province and once again demonstrated to the world that socioeconomic development with the help of nuclear energy is high on its agenda.
The peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program is public knowledge and Tehran has made this known at the highest levels of its power structure.
In tandem with the Islamic state’s good intentions, the heavy water plant was inaugurated with utmost transparency for the benefit of the international public opinion and those who care about such sensitive issues without any strings attached.
Iran once again proved that it is candid in its nuclear operations and has nothing to conceal. Nevertheless, some governments for obvious reasons doubt Tehran’s plans and will not miss any opportunity to make new charges, despite their past failures.
During the inaugural ceremony of this important project, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reiterated that nuclear weapons is not an issue in Iran because our republic is no threat to any other country, including the lawless Zionist regime in Israel, which remains the No. 1 enemy of all regional peoples.
Strangely but nor surprisingly, today the very regimes, who have blood on their hands and are better known for blatant violations of human rights across continents, are questioning the direction of our nuclear program. Some of them are top candidates for a place on the global list of war criminals.
The chief executive’s statements could not be more to the point. Unambiguous and honest as it is, Tehran’s message now is that it is pursuing its legitimate rights without fear or favor, and that it will not give in to intimidation by evil powers or accept their hypocrisy and hegemony.
To demonstrate its goodwill, in its response to the proposals by the 5+1 group, Tehran has said it will agree to suspend uranium enrichment for a limited time under specific conditions, within the framework of building more confidence with the international community, for protecting its inalienable rights.
By underlining the peaceful nature of its nuclear program and keeping the door open to IAEA inspections for years together, Iran has shown that it is not a threat to any country and should not be perceived as such. However, this does not mean that it would look the other way when it comes to defending the rights of the people.
Iran is prepared, has the ability and possesses all that it takes to defend its rights on the international scene if that is what is required.
It must be added that any uncalculated move by the US or some European states against Iran’s nuclear program would be disastrous and bring in its wake adverse consequences for the western powers more than anybody else.
Israel’s failed conquest in Lebanon proved that even arrogant powers, despite all their pomp and show, can miscalculate only to make a bad situation worse.
Most US, Israeli and western observers, powerhouses and think tanks have acknowledged that Bush’s America and the Zionists were humiliated by a small guerrilla organization in Lebanon fighting a war of liberation.
Commonsense, though in short supply across the world today, demands that governments and those who decide policy proceed with extra caution and avoid haste.