Iran lashes out at nuclear critics

BOSTON, March 25 (UPI) -- The Iranian mission to the United Nations reacted angrily to an editorial in The Boston Globe questioning the intent of the Iranian nuclear program.

A March 11 editorial in the Globe by William Tobey, a proliferations expert at Harvard University, alleged Iran has deliberately underreported its quantity of low-enrichment uranium.

"Iran's track record with respect to full and accurate disclosure of its nuclear activities has been less than pristine," he noted, adding that the accounting irregularity is "a serious concern."

Tobey wrote that the regulatory International Atomic Energy Agency uncovered 460 pounds of uranium material that was not reported on the Iranian inventory in November.

An Iranian spokesperson responded in a letter published by the Globe, saying Tobey's position was biased.

"This is nonsense, a throwback to the Iran-phobia of the previous U.S. administration, and omits the pertinent empirical facts about Iran's peaceful nuclear program," press counselor M.A. Mohammadi wrote in the letter.

A February report by the IAEA said Iran's enrichment activity had decreased recently, but the intent of the program remained ambiguous despite years of monitoring.

Meanwhile, Russian officials have said repeatedly that nuclear activity at the Bushehr facility does not violate the provisions of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Iran insists its nuclear program is for civilian energy despite holding some of the world's largest oil and gas reserves.