Iran said Monday it will begin building a new site to enrich uranium by March, moving ahead with a plan that defies international efforts to curb its nuclear development. Uranium enrichment factories are used to create fuel for nuclear power plants but can also produce material for weapons.

    The planned plant is among 10 new sites that Iran approved last year in a significant expansion of its controversial enrichment program. The announcement said the locations for the sites have been determined but gave no details.

    This weekend, Russia will begin loading fuel into Iran’s Bushehr nuclear facility on Saturday with a view to the plant going online by the last weeks of September.

    The U.S. and its allies accuse Iran of using its civilian nuclear program as a cover to develop a nuclear weapons capability. Iran has denied the accusation, saying its nuclear program is geared merely towards generating electricity.

    <<<背景介绍

       伊朗在中部城市纳坦兹有一个大规模的铀浓缩基地，该基地约有6000台离心分离机在同时运转。另外在其北部城市库姆有一小点的基地正在修建。伊朗称需要20个大规模的铀浓缩基地，才能满足国内未来15年2万兆瓦的电力需求。库姆的反应堆建在山里，这样可以最大限度地降低其受到空袭的可能性。库姆基地是纳坦兹基地的缩小版，目前仍未投入使用。