Iran Says Attack on Nuclear Sites Improbable

People pass by an anti-Israel billboard depicting Iran's missile attack on Israel with a sentence reading in Persian “If you want war, we are the master of war”, at the Enqelab Square, in Tehran, Iran, 07 October 2024. (EPA)
People pass by an anti-Israel billboard depicting Iran's missile attack on Israel with a sentence reading in Persian “If you want war, we are the master of war”, at the Enqelab Square, in Tehran, Iran, 07 October 2024. (EPA)
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Iran Says Attack on Nuclear Sites Improbable

People pass by an anti-Israel billboard depicting Iran's missile attack on Israel with a sentence reading in Persian “If you want war, we are the master of war”, at the Enqelab Square, in Tehran, Iran, 07 October 2024. (EPA)
People pass by an anti-Israel billboard depicting Iran's missile attack on Israel with a sentence reading in Persian “If you want war, we are the master of war”, at the Enqelab Square, in Tehran, Iran, 07 October 2024. (EPA)

The probability of an attack on Iran's nuclear sites remains low but any potential damage would be "quickly compensated", state atomic energy agency spokesperson Behrouz Kamalvandi said on Wednesday, according to semi-official Nournews.

After Iran's missile attack on Israel on Oct. 1, there has been speculation that Israel could strike Iran's nuclear facilities, as it has long threatened to do.

"We have always taken these threats seriously," Kamalvandi said.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement on Tuesday that Israel would listen to the United States but would decide its actions according to its own national interest.

The statement was attached to a Washington Post article which said Netanyahu had told President Joe Biden's administration that Israel would strike Iranian military targets, not nuclear or oil targets.

Biden has said he would not support an attack on Iran's nuclear sites and oil markets have been on edge over the prospect of an Israeli strike against Iranian oil fields.

Kamalvandi told Nournews that any attack on Iran's nuclear sites remained improbable and that if this happened, the damage was likely to be minimal and quickly repaired by Iran.

"We have planned in a way that if they commit any stupidity, the damages would be minimal," Kamalvandi said.

The Iranian spokesperson added that the UN nuclear watchdog and the international community should condemn any threat or attack on nuclear sites.



Ukraine Calls for Sanctions over Alleged North Korean Involvement in War

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy addresses lawmakers as he presents the so-called “Victory Plan” during a parliament session, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy addresses lawmakers as he presents the so-called “Victory Plan” during a parliament session, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
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Ukraine Calls for Sanctions over Alleged North Korean Involvement in War

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy addresses lawmakers as he presents the so-called “Victory Plan” during a parliament session, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 16, 2024. (Reuters)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy addresses lawmakers as he presents the so-called “Victory Plan” during a parliament session, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine October 16, 2024. (Reuters)

Ukraine called on its allies on Wednesday to impose new sanctions on Pyongyang after it said North Korea had become a de facto participant in the war in Ukraine on Russia's side.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told parliament in a speech to outline his victory plan that his spy services had confirmed North Korea's supply of both weapons and people to Russia, echoing similar comments in recent days.

"These are workers for Russian factories to replace Russians killed in the war. And personnel for the Russian army. In fact, this is the participation of a second state in the war against Ukraine on the side of Russia," Zelenskiy said.

The Kremlin has denied the allegation of North Korea sending people as "fake news". Moscow and Pyongyang have denied arms transfers but have said they will boost military ties, possibly including joint drills.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv's allies should respond firmly, including by imposing new sanctions and further isolating Pyongyang, whose relations with Russia have grown closer since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

"This is a huge threat of further escalation. We are approaching a new phase, new realities of war," he said at a news conference in the Black Sea city of Odesa.

White House National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett said on Tuesday that the involvement of North Korean troops in Ukraine, if true, would mark a significant increase in the North Korea-Russia defense relationship.

Washington also says North Korea has supplied Russia with ballistic missiles and ammunition.

The US Army's Indo-Pacific commander, General Charles Flynn, told an event in Washington that North Korean personnel being involved in the conflict would allow Pyongyang to get real-time feedback on its weapons, something that had not been possible in the past.