As Of Nov, Tehran In Possession Of 630Kg Of Uranium, Says IAEA
William J Broad & David E Sanger

Iran has now produced roughly enough nuclear material to make, with added purification, a single atom bomb, according to nuclear experts analyzing the latest report from global atomic inspectors.

In a new twist to negotiations on the much-delayed Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) pipeline, Tehran wants legal immunity in case of armed conflict disrupting natural gas supplies through the proposed line.

The world's big powers have been told to expect a formal response as soon as today from the Tehran government that sets out an initiative designed to restart negotiations over Iran's nuclear programme.

The letterfollows a conversation yesterday between Javier Solana, the European Union's foreign policy head, and Saeed Jalili, Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, that was described by Mr Solana's office as inconclusive. Further talks "were not ruled out", a spokesman said.

Iranian state television said Mr Jalili "stressed the continuation of talks" and "contacts" in the phone call.

Speaking just days before a deadline set by world powers for Iran to reply to proposals to curb its nuclear ambitions, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country's supreme leader, said Wednesday that Iran would "continue with its path' of nuclear development, which includes the enrichment of uranium.

Siddharth Varadarajan

New Delhi: In an attempt to address the pointed concerns India raised about the proposed Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline during the visit here of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last April, the Iranian government has handed over some fresh proposals and called for talks to quickly finalise the deal.

The world's largest gas company, Gazprom of Russia, and the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) have signed an agreement for the development of Iran's oil and gas fields. This will give Gazprom access to the world's second-largest gas reserves.

NIOC and Gazprom will cooperate in developing Iran's oil and gas fields, the transfer of oil from the Caspian Sea to the Sea of Oman, and the construction of a refinery in northern Iran.

"Based on the agreement, we will form working groups, and one month after the signing of the deal we will start the work,' said