Iran’s Nuclear Submarine Gambit

Iran’s Nuclear Submarine Gambit

by Zachary Keck

For some time now a pattern has developed in the standoff between Iran and the United States in which the U.S. and its allies strengthen sanctions against Tehran, which responds by making advances in its nuclear program. The increased sanctions and nuclear advances are then used by each side as bargaining chips in negotiations.
In the meantime the standoff has become relatively stable in the short term as Iran has carefully limited its stockpile of 20 percent enriched uranium and has not enriched to higher levels, while the U.S. has not acted on its military threats and has sought to constrain Israel from exercising its own military option.
In the last 24 hours two new factors have emerged that could potentially derail this stability over the next few years.
The first and most serious one was an announcement by the head of the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization, Fereydoon Abbasi-Davani, that Iran may seek nuclear submarines in the future. This is significant because nuclear submarines require nuclear fuel that is enriched to anywhere between 45 and 90 percent levels, the latter being bomb-grade.http://thediplomat.com/flashpoints-blog/2013/04/18/irans-nuclear-submarine-gambit/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+the-diplomat+%28The+Diplomat+RSS%29&utm_content=Google+Reader