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ElBaradei hails Iran's cooperation with IAEA |
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Friday, 22 February 2008 |
The UN nuclear watchdog chief Mohammed ElBaradei said on Friday that Iran in
the last few months had provided the IAEA with visits to many places, that
enabled them to have a clearer picture of its current program.
ElBaradei, making comments after releasing his 11-page report on Iran here on
Friday, said, "In addition to our work, to clarify Iran's past nuclear
activities, we have to make sure, naturally, that Iran's current activities are
also exclusively for peace purposes and for that we have been asking Iran to
conclude the so called Additional Protocol, which gives us the additional
authority to visit places, additional authority to have additional documents, to
be able to provide assurance, not only that Iran's declared activities are for
peaceful purposes but that there are no undeclared nuclear activities.
On that score, Iran in the last few months has provided us with visits to many
places, that enable us to have a clearer picture of Iran's current program."
He urged Iran to implement the Additional Protocol.
"We need Iran to implement the Additional Protocol. We need to have that
authority as a matter of law. That, I think, is a key for us to start being able
to build progress in providing assurance that Iran's past and current programs
are exclusively for peaceful purposes. So we have the Protocol issue and we have
the weaponization, alleged weaponization studies."
He said the IAEA studies show no link with nuclear material.
"I should however add that in connection with the weaponization studies, we have
not seen any indication that these studies were linked to nuclear material. So
that gives us some satisfaction but the issue is still critical for us to be
able to come to a determination as to the nature of Iran's nuclear program," he
announced.
He said there has been confidence deficit on part of the international community
about Iran's intentions on its nuclear program.
"As a result of Iran running an undeclared nuclear program for almost two
decades, there has been confidence deficit on the part of the international
community about the intentions, future intentions of Iran's nuclear program.
Therefore the Security Council asked Iran to suspend its enrichment-related
activities," he said.
Source: IRNA
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