The best that can be said about Iran's announcement that it intends to build a further 10 uranium enrichment facilities is that at least we are now clear about its intentions.
For much of the past year, the West has been labouring under the illusion that Iran might somehow be coaxed into negotiating a resolution to the international crisis over its nuclear programme. Barack Obama, in particular, has gone out of his way since taking office last January to try to persuade Tehran to end the decades of anti-American hostility that have defined Iran's approach to Washington since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
Shortly after his inaugural address, Mr Obama offered to negotiate directly with Tehran, without preconditions, if the regime would agree to "unclench its fist" and demonstrate its willingness to resolve the nuclear crisis by peaceful means. But all the President has got in return is a hardening of Tehran's position, resulting in an announcement that, even by Iranian standards, represents a dramatic escalation in the country's nuclear ambitions. Iran's fist, it seems, remains as tightly clenched as at any time during the past 30 years.
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