Nuclear Program
Syria | |
---|---|
Nuclear program start date | 1979 |
First nuclear weapon test | None |
First fusion weapon test | None |
Last nuclear test | None |
Largest yield test | None |
Total tests | None |
Peak stockpile | None |
Current stockpile | None |
Maximum missile range | Scud-D (700km) |
NPT signatory | Yes |
Syria is a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and maintains a civil nuclear program. On September 6, 2007, Israel unilaterally bombed a site in Syria which it believed had hosted a nuclear reactor under construction. U.S. intelligence officials claimed low confidence that the site was meant for weapons development. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has said the site in discussion was just "a military site under construction" and that Syria's goal is a nuclear-free Middle East. Syria allowed the IAEA to visit the site on June 23, 2008, taking environmental samples that revealed the presence of man-made uranium and other materials consistent with a reactor. On May 24, 2011, IAEA Director General Amano released a report which assessed that the destroyed facility was a reactor, and the IAEA Board of Governors voted 17-6 (with 11 abstentions) to report this as non-compliance to the UN Security Council.
Read more about this topic: Syria And Weapons Of Mass Destruction
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