Notwithstanding the recent US National Intelligence Estimate that has “high confidence” that Iran stopped its nuclear weapons work in 2003, Israel’s Ambassador to the US said Tehran’s pursuit of the means to produce a nuclear weapon remains his country’s “No. 1 concern.” Ambassador Sallai Meridor told defense reporters in Washington Tuesday (see above) that the threat remains real and continues to grow. “Nobody in their right mind suggests they are not more advanced today than they were two years ago,” Meridor said. Even the NIE, he said, noted that Iran could have the capability to produce weapons grade nuclear material by 2010. While he claimed that he was not pleased with the level of pressure being applied, he added that there is still a window of opportunity to create the conditions for the Iranian leadership to reconsider its position. However, he said, two things need to happen “if you want to avoid the juncture of either bombing Iran or having Iran with the bomb.” First, continue to mount a very serious economic campaign to isolate the regime, and second communicate that the world will not allow the development of nuclear weaponry. “If they are not stopped, we will leave our children a nightmare,” Meridor maintained.
The Space Development Agency isn’t slowing down anytime soon. On Oct. 2, the organization released a notice to industry outlining its plans for a busy 2025 on the acquisition front, as it will look to procure around 200 satellites from different solicitations for Tranche 3 of its low-Earth orbit constellation.