How IAEA reports on Iran are distorted in the West

by Tomás Rosa Bueno, CASMII, 2 June 2010


In ten easy steps:

1. The IAEA has issued a report on Iran's nuclear activities that's still confidential pending review by the Security Council.

2. This report has been leaked in part or in full to Reuters.

3. The leaked material may - or may not - be a true reflection of what's in the actual report.

4. According to the leaked material, the IAEA may have said Iran has now 2.5 tons of LEU, enriched to 3.5%.

5. LEU is not, repeat not, "bomb material".

6. To be useful for making bombs, LEU needs to be enriched from 3.5% to over 90%.

7. According to all IAEA reports published so far, Iran does not, repeat not, have the technology to enrich uranium to bomb grade, over 90%.

8. According to all IAEA reports published so far, Iran is not, repeat not, deviating nuclear material to any unknown applications.

9. According to all IAEA reports published so far, Iran's stockpile of fissile material is fully accounted for.

10. According to all IAEA reports published so far, Iran's known nuclear facilities are fully monitored and there's no way they could be used to build a secret bomb.

10. The 2.5 tons of LEU could be used to make a bomb if:

a. Iran really wanted to make one.

b. The Iranians knew how to do it.

c. Knowing how to do it, the Iranians could put the theory to practical uses.

d. Knowing the theory and mastering the practice, the Iranians could elude surveillance well and long enough to build, test and commission a nuclear bomb.


Now how do you go about spreading false information without actually lying?
Easy: you ignore (1), (2), and (3), jump straight from (4) to (10), skip (10a), (10b), (10c) and (10d) and bang!, there's you headline: "UN Says Iran Could Produce 2 Nuclear Weapons". Or "UN Says Iran Has Fuel for 2 Nuclear Bombs", or even "Iran on the brink of a nuclear bomb."

I told you it was easy. And they actually do this:

 http://tinyurl.com/AOLNews-IranBomb

 http://tinyurl.com/NYT-IranBomb

 http://tinyurl.com/PI-IranBomb


Then they go around asking people what should be done to keep the Iranians from having a bomb. And 78% of them say "sanction them", 42% say "bomb them" and 33% say "invade them":  http://tinyurl.com/ABCPost-IranPoll.