New IAEA report on Iran's nuke progress brings Obama under question

Washington, Sep. 18 (ANI): The Obama administration's claim that Iran's short- and medium-range missiles posed the highest risk may come under question following an IAEA report warning that Iran has the ability to make a nuclear bomb and is developing a missile system to carry it.

Within hours of US Defense Secretary Robert Gates announcing that they were shelving plans for a missile defense shield in Eastern Europe because of Iran's shift in strategy, IAEA's confidential report revealed that Iran has "sufficient information" to build a bomb, Fox News reports.

However, an IAEA spokesman was quoted by the report as saying that the evidence suggesting Iran has a nuclear weapons program has not been verified.

"With respect to a recent media report, the IAEA reiterates that it has no concrete proof that there is or has been a nuclear weapon program in Iran," the IAEA said in a written statement.

In February, Iran launched a satellite into space fuelling speculations that the nation was making progress on long-range technology, the report notes.

American lawmakers said that Obama was ignoring these threats when he shelved the Eastern European-based missile defense shield proposed by former President George W. Bush, which was strongly opposed by Russia.

"Scrapping the U.S. missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic does little more than empower Russia and Iran at the expense of our allies in Europe," the report quoted House Minority Leader John Boehner, as saying.

However, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs called the accusations that the U.S. was sacrificing security "unfounded criticism." (ANI)