QOM, Iran (AP) - Iran said Tuesday it had found uranium ore at three new sites in the center of the country, an announcement that appeared designed as a fresh challenge to the drive by the United States and allies to curb Tehran's nuclear program.Iran already has considerable uranium resources available for its nuclear program, a fact that called into question the importance of the new discoveries - beyond their propaganda value. "We have got good news: the discovery of new economically viable deposits of uranium in central Iran," Mohammad Ghannadi, deputy chief for nuclear research and technology, told a conference.
He said the deposits were found in the Khoshoomi region, Charchooleh and Narigan. Iran's principal source of uranium is the Saghand mine in the center of the country, which has the capacity to produce 132,000 tons of ore per year.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Iran's announcement showed "they are feeling increasingly uncomfortable" with their programs being reviewed by the U.N. Security Council. As a result, he said, "they are throwing up all sorts of chaff in the air right now to divert attention, to try to make threatening statements to the international community."