The Philadelphia Bulletin: Iran’s First Nuclear Power Plant Passes Its Main Tests

by David Bedein

JERUSALEM - Iran has announced that its first nuclear power plant in the southern Iranian city of Bushehr has successfully passed the main tests and expressed the hope that the plant would launch operation within the next few months.

“Main tests of Bushehr nuclear power plant have been accomplished successfully,” Ali Akbar Salehi, chief of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), said in Iran’s state TV channel on Tuesday, adding another test will be carried out within the next few months so that we can include nuclear fuel into the power plant’s cycle.

Mr. Salehi, Iran’s former ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), called the West’s concern on Iran’s access to nuclear energy “political” and said, “the important issue is that Iran has got access to the required knowledge for employment of peaceful nuclear energy, although the West and particularly the U.S. feared from Iran’s access to the technology.”

He continued, “The U.S. can not put severe pressure on North Korea since the country has close cooperation with South Korea, Russia and China, whereas the IAEA inspectors visit Iran every two weeks and, despite of all observations, they are doubtful about Iran’s nuclear programs.”

He added, “Massacre has no place in Islamic Republic of Iran’s doctrine, and we do not want production of nuclear weapons.”

Read the original article in the Philadelphia Bulletin