Iran is bluffing on nuclear enrichment

Iran's latest nuclear provocation is a bluff, experts argue, and the West should be wary of being drawn into talks with Tehran that might hand a victory to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's fragile regime. France, which holds the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council, is preparing a motion that, if passed, would impose crippling sanctions on Iran's oil-dominated economy, a senior Paris official said. Western powers believe Iran's eventual goal is to make the highly enriched uranium that would allow it to build a nuclear weapon and radically alter the balance of power in the already unstable Middle East and Central Asia. But analysts warn that Ahmadinejad may be exaggerating Iran's ability to advance its nuclear program in order to force the West to come to the negotiating table on his terms and reinforce his shaky position at home.