Reports on Iran's 'Renewed Attempts' to Build Nuclear Weapons Are 'Absurd'

German newspaper Tagesspiegel has recently accused Iran of attempting to built a nuclear bomb, referring to the Federal Office for the Protection of the German Constitution that allegedly has "incontrovertible evidence that Iran is trying by all means to get the materials needed to build nuclear warheads and launchers."

In an interview with Sputnik, Hassan Beheshtipour, expert in the field of nuclear energy and Press TV's political observer, commented on the issue, saying that the statements made by the newspaper have nothing to do with reality.

"First I want to draw the attention of the listeners to the fact that such false statements have been made by a German media source not for the first time. The explanation is simple. Such publications comply with the spirit of the information policy of the German press, which is pro-Israel. These groundless and false statements are based on some indirect prepositions, but not the facts," the expert said.

The newspaper referred to the data of the German Ministry of Interior, according to which Iran has been conducting illegal searches for technology to create weapons of mass destruction. Moreover, the newspaper claims that Iran's moves in this direction have become more intensive in recent years.

"There were about 90 illegal attempts to gain access to equipment that would be used for nuclear weapons and launchers," the newspaper wrote.

According to Beheshtipour, such statements that Iran is allegedly secretly trying to get the materials needed to build nuclear warheads sound "absurd".

The expert stated that Iran is acting in accordance with the principle of transparency, which is strictly controlled by the IAEA. Moreover, the country voluntarily signed the Additional Protocol to the safeguards agreement with the IAEA and continues to comply with all the conditions with regard to the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

"The publication of such articles primarily targets an unprepared audience that is not fully aware about all the details of the documents signed on the Iranian nuclear program, in particular JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action]. Do all readers know that this important document has a section which describes the tiniest details of a monitoring mechanism on Iran's purchases of materials, substances, equipment and technology, even dual-use items, in the framework of the Iranian nuclear program?," Beheshtipour asked.

"Therefore, I think that behind all these false publications are pro-Israel forces, whose policy is based on Iranophobia and aimed at discrediting Iran's image in the eyes of the international community, and as a fact, disrupting JCPOA," the expert concluded.

In July 2015, Iran and six world powers, including the United States, Russia, China, France, Germany and the United Kingdom, signed the nuclear agreement to ensure the peaceful nature of Tehran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. As a result of the deal, Iran has cut its enrichment-related activities and stopped its work on heavy water-related projects.