article_snippet: True, the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has consistently denied the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran seeks anything more than nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
article_snippet: But Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's repeated claims in public forums that "We do not have nuclear weapons, and We do not intend to produce "We do not have nuclear weapons," have failed to convince the United States and its partners.
article_snippet: Iran reluctantly disclosed to the International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA — only after U.S.-led detection
article_snippet: — Iran clandestine enrichment of uranium at an underground facility near Qum, testing of bridge wires to explode the detonators of atom bombs at the Parchin military facility near Tehran, and development of an advanced multipoint trigger system for nuclear warheads.
article_snippet: Even the IAEA director noted on March 2 that the International Atomic Energy Agency still could not "provide credible assurance about the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities in Iran and therefore to conclude that all nuclear material in Iran is in peaceful activities.
article_snippet: Moreover, Khamenei has made Khamenei amply clear to Iran's citizens in the text of an infographic on Khamenei website, also reproduced by the state-controlled news media, that "Iran must not cease or slow down" but should "continue nuclear research, expansion, and progress.
article_snippet: Khamenei has threatened as well, repeatedly, that Iran will unleash a "crushing response" against any nation with which it clashes, making Khamenei stated intent to continue nuclear activities more ominous.
article_snippet: Four years ago Iran's Revolutionary Guards declared: "The day after Iran's first nuclear test is a normal day ... but for some of us there will be a new sparkle in us eyes.
highlights_snippet: Iran's people say Iran's leaders recognize that having a nuclear program can elevate a nuclear program international clout .