Iran Announces Installation of More Centrifuges at Uranium Enrichment Plant

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08 April 2008

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahamadinejad announced on Tuesday that Iran is installing 6,000 new centrifuges at an uranium enrichment plant. The announcement drew sharp criticism from the United States and is expected to deepen the political rift between Iran and the West.  For VOA, Aya Batrawy has more from our Middle East bureau in Cairo.

"I don't think that the underlying situation has changed which is that Iran faces three separate U.N. Security Council resolutions," she said.  "Iran faces continued isolation in the international community."

The United Nations Security Council has already passed three sets of sanctions against Iran for refusing to halt its enrichment program.  

Iran has long defended what it claims is its right to enrich uranium and says its nuclear program is strictly for peaceful energy purposes.

But the United States believes that Iran is working to develop a nuclear weapon.

Iran says it hopes to install some 54,000 centrifuges at Natanz.