Natanz

On the road to Natanz.

Natanz, famous for its pears and serene orchards, is also home to Iran's gas centrifuge uranium enrichment plant. The landscape, just beyond this sign is littered with anti air-craft batteries and army checkpoints; a deterrent to Israeli air-strikes and foreign or IAEA spies. The UN has imposed a fresh round of sanctions on Iran again for its nuclear activities. I have never been a fan of sanctions, they are a blunt tool that hurts the people more than the powers that be. Either that or they are insignificant which chips at the credibility of the issuing body. Whatever views you may have on sanctions and Iran, Gwynne Dyer's interesting commentary is worth a read.

"They added that it would take Iran another three to five years to produce a "deliverable weapon that is usable", if that were its intention. But they did not say that Iran was actually doing those things, just that it could. They also did not mention that you can say exactly the same things about Germany, Japan, Argentina, Brazil, and the Netherlands. Each could produce enough enriched uranium for a bomb in a year, but that it would take them three to five years to produce an actual weapon. Belgium, Italy, Spain, and Australia would take a little longer."