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Washington: A new US intelligence report says Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003 and it remains on hold, contradicting the Bush administration's earlier assertion that Tehran was intent on developing a bomb.
The latest National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) released by the Bush administration also said Iran would likely be capable of producing enough enriched uranium for a nuclear weapon “sometime during the 2010-2015 time-frame.”
The report contains a number of differences from findings two years ago in which US intelligence agencies concluded that Iran was “determined to develop nuclear weapons despite its international obligations and international pressure.”
The latest report comes amid Tehran's continuing defiance in the face of US-led international demands to halt its uranium enrichment activities.
Iran has already been hit with two rounds of UN sanctions and Washington, which insists it wants to solve the problem diplomatically while leaving military options open, is pushing for a third package.
“Today's National Intelligence Estimate offers some positive news. It confirms that we were right to be worried about Iran seeking to develop nuclear weapons. It tells us that we have made progress in trying to ensure that this does not happen," Bush's national security adviser Stephen Hadley said in a statement.
"But the intelligence also tells us that the risk of Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon remains a very serious problem," he added.
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