Iran ups nuclear ante
Iran’s nuclear chief says the country will begin enriching uranium to twenty percent strength ? up from 3.5 percent, and build ten new nuclear facilities over the next year. While the construction of that many facilities in one year is probably not achievable, and while it takes ninety percent enrichment to make a nuclear bomb, the reaction from the United States and France was swift and harsh: The two nations called for even more sanctions on Iran. We ask how great the threat of a nuclear Iran really is.
Hamid Dabashi is a professor of Iranian Studies at Columbia University. Hooman Majd is a journalist and author of “The Ayatollah Begs to Differ: The Paradox of Modern Iran.” Plus, what does it mean that China has replaced the European Union as Iran’s biggest trading partner?
The story you just read is available to read for free because thousands of listeners and readers like you generously support our nonprofit newsroom. Every day, the reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you: We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
When you make a gift of $10 or more a month, we’ll invite you to a virtual behind-the-scenes tour of our newsroom to thank you for being with The World.