Iran and weapons of mass destruction

Weapons of mass destruction
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List of treaties (treaty parties)
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Iran is not known to currently possess weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and has signed treaties repudiating the possession of WMD including the Biological Weapons Convention,^[1] the Chemical Weapons Convention,^[2] and the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).^[3] Iran has first-hand knowledge of WMD effects—over 100,000 Iranian troops and civilians were victims of chemical weapons during the 1980s Iran–Iraq War.^[4][5]

In 2003 the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with other clerics, issued a public and categorical religious decree (fatwa) against the development, production, stockpiling and use of nuclear weapons,^[6][7] though it is approved by some relatively minor clerics.^[8] Later versions of this fatwa forbid only the "use" of nuclear weapons, but said nothing about their production.^[9] Iran has stated its uranium enrichment program is exclusively for peaceful purposes.^[10][11] The IAEA has confirmed the non-diversion of declared nuclear material in Iran but has also said it "needs to have confidence in the absence of possible military dimensions to Iran’s nuclear program."^[12][13]

In December 2014, a Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control report by Lincy and Milhollin based on IAEA data concluded that Iran could produce enough weapons-grade uranium for one nuclear warhead in 1.7 months.^[14] In 2012, sixteen U.S. intelligence agencies, including the CIA, reported that Iran was pursuing research that could enable it to produce nuclear weapons, but was not attempting to do so.^[15] In 2010 and 2011, the senior officers of all of the major American intelligence agencies stated that there was no conclusive evidence that Iran has made any attempt to produce nuclear weapons since 2003.^[16] In a 2007 National Intelligence Estimate, the United States Intelligence Community assessed that Iran had ended all "nuclear weapon design and weaponization work" in 2003.^[17] Then U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta stated in January 2012 that Iran was pursuing a nuclear weapons capability, but was not attempting to produce nuclear weapons.^[18] In 2009, U.S. intelligence assessed that Iranian intentions were unknown.^[19][20] Some European intelligence believe Iran has resumed its alleged nuclear weapons design work.^[21] In 2011, then Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Iran was close to having the capability to produce nuclear weapons.^[22] Iran has called for nuclear weapons states to disarm and for the Middle East to be a nuclear weapon free zone.^[23]

After the IAEA voted in a rare non-consensus decision to find Iran in non-compliance with its NPT Safeguards Agreement and to report that non-compliance to the UN Security Council,^[24][25] the Council demanded that Iran suspend its nuclear enrichment activities^[26][27] and imposed sanctions against Iran^{[28][29][30][31]} when Iran refused to do so.^[32] Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad argued that the sanctions were illegal.^[33] The IAEA has been able to verify the non-diversion of declared nuclear material in Iran, but not the absence of undeclared activities.^[34] The Non-Aligned Movement has called on both sides to work through the IAEA for a solution.^[35]

In November 2009, the IAEA Board of Governors adopted^[36] a resolution against Iran which urged Iran to apply the modified Code 3.1 to its Safeguard Agreement,^[37] urged Iran to implement and ratify the Additional Protocol,^[37] and expressed "serious concern" that Iran had not cooperated on issues that needed "to be clarified to exclude the possibility of military dimensions to Iran's nuclear program."^[38] Iran said the "hasty and undue" resolution would "jeopardize the conducive environment vitally needed" for successful negotiations.^[38]