Iranians mark 'National Nuclear Technology Day'

Gisoo Misha Ahmadi 
Press TV, Tehran

Iran’s first attempts to acquire peaceful nuclear technology date back to the late 1950s when Tehran Research Reactor was built; and accelerated a decade later with the construction of its Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant; the result of a "proposed agreement for cooperation in research in the peaceful uses of atomic energy" by the US, which ironically today opposes the program.

Ever since Iran has maintained the same position: acquiring nuclear technology for peaceful purposes and development of the country. However, the road has been bumpy for Iran and the country has had a hard time establishing the fact that as a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty – NPT – it is entitled to do so.

Despite US sanctions and western pressure, in 2006, Iran announced it had successfully domesticated the complete cycle of Uranium enrichment. This great step forward is marked in the Iranian calendar as National Nuclear Technology day.

This know-how opened new horizons particularly paving the way for producing heavy water. This led to Iran producing amino acids labeled with deuterium used for early diagnosis of metabolic diseases and also producing deuterium gas to make semiconductors and optical fibers. 

Iran’s achievements in acquiring nuclear technology for peaceful purposes also resulted in producing radioisotopes used in nuclear medicine and today Iran is now among a handful of countries that produces Iridium 192.

Iran has had countless achievements applying nuclear technology in fields such as medicine, agriculture and electronics and today Iranian scientists have gained a foothold in this industry.

This prompted head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Mohammad Eslami to propose to upscale an annual national conference on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy to an international one with the assistance of the IAEA: A proposal well-received by the director general.

This means that Iran could turn into a regional hub sharing its knowhow regarding the peaceful application of nuclear technology.

These achievements did not come without a price. Iranian nuclear scientists have often been the target of an assassination campaign led by Israel. However, this has not stopped Iran from moving forward.

National nuclear energy day usually falls on April 9. It is an occasion for Iranians to reflect on the long way they’ve come since 2006 in acquiring peaceful nuclear technology.

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