Interest grows for international Iran atom plant
Compromise plan from MIT
By Farah Stockman, Globe Staff | June 10, 2008
WASHINGTON - A deeply controversial plan put forth by MIT scientists to end the standoff over Iran's nuclear program is getting increased interest from senior members of both parties in Congress and nonproliferation specialists.
The plan, which was rejected three years ago by the Bush administration, argues for a dramatic shift in US policy: Rather than trying to halt Iran's efforts to enrich uranium, the United States should help build an internationally run enrichment facility inside Iran to replace Iran's current facilities.
Supporters argue that such a program would fulfill Iran's insistence on enriching uranium on its own soil, while preventing the dangerous material from being diverted to weapons.
Three years ago, when the proposal was first advanced, it was widely considered unthinkable. Administration officials argued that tougher sanctions and the threat of military strikes would force Iran to stop its program to enrich uranium, a process that uses thousands of spinning centrifuges to create fuel out of rare uranium isotopes that can be used for nuclear power or weapons.
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