News Detail

• The domestically made rod was inserted into the core of Tehran’s atomic research reactor after performance testsDubai: Iran produced its first nuclear fuel rod, state-run news agencies reported, as the country offered to restart international talks over its atomic programme.The domestically made rod was inserted into the core of Tehran’s atomic research reactor after performance tests, the Iranian Students’ News Agency reported, citing the country’s atomic energy agency. The Tehran reactor produces radioisotopes for cancer treatment, according to Mehr news agency. Nuclear fuel rods contain pellets of enriched uranium that provide fuel for nuclear power plants.The US and allies are increasing pressure on Iran to halt what they say may be a covert nuclear weapons programme. Sanctions signed into law by US President Barack Obama on 31 December 2011 aim to deter dealings with the Iranian central bank. “The European Union (EU), which is considering a ban on imports of oil from Iran, will be ready by 30 January to take a decision on extending sanctions,” Michael Mann, a spokesman for the EU, said on Monday in an e-mailed statement. Iran, the world’s third-largest oil exporter, denies seeking to develop atomic weapons.

• “If Iran has indeed produced its first nuclear fuel rod using its own domestic capabilities that would represent progress in its programme, as just last year there was significant doubt they had that ability,” Meir Javedanfar, lecturer on Iranian politics at the Herzliya Interdisciplinary Centre in Israel, said in a phone interview.“It is possible though that this is part of the psychological warfare launched by Iran against what they see as the tough economic sanctions being placed against it by the US.”Jones Hayden in Brussels and Calev Ben- David in Tel Aviv contributed to this story.

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