The Russian attempt to exploit Iran's dependence on Moscow for its reactor fuel for political purposes was not the first time that Iran had learned the lesson that it could not rely on foreign sources of enriched uranium -- even when the Iranians had legal commitments to provide the fuel for Iran's nuclear reactor. After the Islamic revolution against the Shah in 1979, all of the foreign suppliers on which Iran had expected to rely for nuclear fuel for Bushehr and its Tehran Research Reactor reneged on their commitments.
Iran's permanent representative to the IAEA, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, sent an official communication to IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano on March 1, 2010, stating that specific contracts with U.S., German, French and multinational companies for supply of nuclear fuel had been abruptly terminated under pressure from the U.S. government and its allies. Soltanieh said they were "examples [of] the root cause of confidence deficit vis-a-vis some Western countries regarding the assurance of nuclear supply."
The earlier experiences led Iran to decide around 1985 to seek its own indigenous enrichment capability, according to Iranian officials. The experience with Russia, especially after 2002, hardened Iran's determination to be self-reliant in nuclear fuel fabrication. The IAEA's Clark told the U.S. diplomat in mid-2006 that, if the Russians did cut off their supply of fuel for Bushehr, the Iranians were prepared to make the fuel themselves.
It is not clear whether the Obama administration actually believes the official line that Iran should and must rely on Russia for nuclear fuel. But the history surrounding the issue suggests that Iran will not accept the solution on which the U.S. and its allies are now insisting.
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