Iran is hailing advanced nuclear capabilities by unveiling what it says are new generation centrifuges that allow it speed up uranium enrichment.

Iranian state television Wednesday also broadcast live images of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad loading 20-percent enriched uranium rods into a Tehran reactor that is used for medical research.

Iran touted the developments as steps in the country's efforts to master the complete nuclear fuel cycle, despite Western penalties and United Nations sanctions aimed at stopping the process. The West suspects Iran's nuclear program is aimed at producing nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran denies.

The Tehran reactor produces nuclear isotopes for treating cancer patients.

The International Atomic Energy Agency issued a report in November citing evidence of Iranian efforts to design a nuclear weapon in violation of international sanctions and agreements. Iran says the report was based on fabrications.

A team from the IAEA is scheduled to make a two-day visit to Iran beginning Monday. The agency's chief inspector said experts had “intensive discussions” with Iran about its nuclear aims during a trip in late January, and that both sides had “a lot of work to do.”