伊朗核问题让两伊关系再度紧张

A moment of triumph for Iran, but the news that the Islamic Republic's begun fueling its first nuclear power plant has ramped up tension in the Middle East.

This is Iran's nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi and his Russian counterpart, watching a fuel rod assembly being prepared for insertion into the reactor in the gulf city of Bushehr. Mr. Salehi called the power plant a symbol of Iran's peaceful nuclear activities.

Iran's insisting its nuclear ambition to extend only to the field of peaceful energy production. That means Moscow can sell technology and fuel to Tehran even as it supports UN sanctions designed to hinder the development of nuclear weapons.

But Israel said it can not live with the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran. There is widespread speculations of the Jewish state would launch a preemptive strike against its bitter regional rival if an atom bomb was thought to be close to completion. The US has told Israel the Iranians won't be at that stage for at least a year in a bid to calm the rising tension. But it's not in everyone's interest to quell fears of a standoff between the two powers as the Kremlin captures nuclear energy markets abroad. The talk of conflicts in the Middle East helps fuel Russia's economy by boosting the price of her oil.