President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad AP PHOTO

U.S. experts say centrifuges are in theory enough to produce a nuclear weapon. But they doubted Iran had so many functioning, a difficult technical feat given the country's spotty success with a much smaller number.

Instead, the announcement may aim to increase support at home amid growing criticism of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and to boost Iran's hand with the West by presenting its program as established, said Michael Levi, a nonproliferation expert at the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations.

The Japan Times Weekly: April 14, 2007
(C) All rights reserved