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“In Iran this morning, the country announcing it has successfully taken the next step toward the production of nuclear weapons.  That news comes on the 31st anniversary of the revolution that overthrew the U.S.-backed government of Iran.” (CBS)

President Ahmadinejad is declaring that Iran is able to develop nuclear weapons.  But is the claim credible?
 
We’re taking a look at perspectives from Al Jazeera English, MSNBC, World Focus, The Huffington Post, and FOX News.
 
If President Ahmadinejad's announcement is accurate, it took Iran just two days to enrich uranium to higher levels -- from 3.5 percent to 20 percent purity.

A nuclear engineer tells Al Jazeera English he's skeptical Iran a giant technological leap so swiftly.
 
"For Iran to actually move to a 20 percent enrichment would mean it would have to devote its somewhat limited enrichment facilities and the gas facilities it requires to prepare for that.”

On MSNBC, a foreign correspondent argues that’s not enough to say Iran is lying.
 
“But it’s really hard to know if Iran is telling the truth or not.  Iran does often overstate its claims, but I think if the U.S. wasn’t concerned about Iran’s nuclear program, the world would look very different today.”

Iran initially said it was producing the higher grade uranium for a medical reactor. But the United States and other Western nations dismissed those claims and said they will seek tougher U.N. santions against Iran. They said they believed Iran was taking an important incremental step toward producing the 90-percent enriched uranium needed for nuclear weapons. On World Focus, an Iran specialist says Iran's announcements underscore the country's resistance to the West.
 
“I would assume that these announcements are being done with an eye to their effect on the local scene, and Iranian leaders want to show that they can firm against the West and the Western pressure.”

In a commentary on The Huffington Post, the president of the Progressive Policy Institute warns the United States needs to avoid feeding the hype.
 
"The United States should be wary of doing anything now -- either by overreacting to its bluster, or rushing to engage in high level talks -- that would boost the sagging prestige of the Iranian leadership."

But on FOX News, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates says it doesn’t matter if Iran is telling the truth.  It’s a good time to push for tougher sanctions anyway.
 
“The point of the pressure is to bring the Iranians back to the negotiating table and to resolve this issue in a way that prevents Iran from having a nuclear weapon.”

So do you think Iran is close to developing a nuclear weapon? Do you think sanctions will be effective?

Writer: Courtney Cebula

Producer: Newsy Staff