Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) who visited a newly disclosed nuclear facility in Iran found operations much further along than Tehran admitted when it revealed the plant’s existence in September.

In their internal report — which didn't remain "internal" for long — the inspectors relate how they told Iranian authorities of satellite pictures showing the new Fordow plant near the city of Qom has been under construction for several years, while Iran only admits to beginning in late 2007. The inspectors estimate the new plant will be able to produce about a ton of enriched uranium per year — enough for a nuclear warhead — starting in 2011.

This lack of transparency, the IAEA says, "reduces the level of confidence in the absence of other nuclear facilities under construction and gives rise to questions about whether there were any other nuclear facilities in Iran which had not been declared to the Agency" as Iran is required to do by the United Nations.

The report says Iran denied the existence of any other sites — but the IAEA has asked for reconfirmation of that.

At the moment stories about the report started breaking, I happened to be having coffee with Paris-based foreign-policy analyst Olivier Guitta, who specializes in Iran. Guitta says the new information should convince the reluctant governments in Russia and China to support the U.S. and Europe’s tougher line against Tehran at the U.N. Security Council.

“At this point nobody can deny that Iran is on a path to a nuclear bomb," he said. And because the new criticism comes from the IAEA, which is seen as objective and usually very cautious in its conclusions, Guitta believes it will have a big impact on attitudes toward Tehran. “The Russians can’t say it’s a U.S. or an EU body that is pushing their agenda," he explained.

He predicts a new round of sanctions against Tehran — with Russian and Chinese approval — by the end of the year.