Darth Vader
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Sir John Sawers, the head of the British intelligence agency M16, has estimated that Iran will likely achieve nuclear weapons capability within two years. Sir John spoke in front of a forum of about 100 senior civil servants in London last week, and announced that covert British operations had prevented nuclear weapons development as far back as 2008. He said, "The Iranians are determinedly going down a path to master all aspects of nuclear weapons...It is equally clear that Israel and the United States would face huge dangers if Iran were to become a nuclear weapon state." Iran has insisted its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. The United States has further tightened sanctions to increase pressure on Iran after recent rounds of talks have failed to bring the parties to an agreement. According to the U.S. Treasury Department, it has blacklisted several companies and individuals it suspects are assisting Iran in its acquisition of nuclear weapons capacity. The U.S. Treasury department has also identified "Iran's attempts to evade sanctions through the use of front companies, as well as its attempts to conceal its tanker fleet by repainting, reflagging or disabling GPS devices." The United States has also ramped up military deployments to the Persian Gulf as Iran continues threatening to close the vital waterway, the Straight of Hormuz.
