Iran is still actively seeking to develop weapons of mass destruction (WMD), according to a German intelligence report, in direct contradiction to Chancellor Angela Merkel’s belief that the 2015 atomic deal with the Islamic Republic ended Tehran’s nuclear weapon ambitions.
The Jerusalem Post reports has reviewed the 211-page Hamburg document that states “some of the crisis countries… are still making an effort to obtain products for the manufacture of atomic, biological and chemical weapons of mass destruction (proliferation) and the corresponding missile carrier technology (rocket technology).”
The Hamburg report also revealed “the current main focus points of countries in the area of relevant proliferation activities are: Iran, Syrian, Pakistan and Syria.”
All this flies in the face of assurances given by Merkel as recently as last month that the Iran accord, officially called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), is not a means for the Islamic Republic to arm itself with nuclear weapons.
“There’s not agreement on every issue,” Merkel said after meeting with Israeli Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Berlin, adding Germany and Israel agree on the need to prevent a “nuclear-armed” Iran, although they have different views on how to achieve that goal.
Mr. Netanyahu, a steadfast opponent of the nuclear deal since it was signed in 2015, in response accused Iran of “trying to conquer” the Middle East with its military presence in Syria. The Israeli leader also lobbied European powers to follow the lead of the United States and pull out of the Iran nuclear accord.
U.S. President Donald Trump ended the JCPOA in May because of the agreement’s failure to prevent Tehran from building a nuclear weapon device. Merkel has remained silent on the intelligence findings of state agencies that appear to defeat her strong defense of the effectiveness of the JCPOA deal as originally brokered by then-Prersident Barack Obama.
Iran’s illicit activities – ranging from espionage to support for Hezbollah and the spread of religious extremism – are cited 48 times in Hamburg’s intelligence report.
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