Page 1 of 2 Brave new world of Iranian
nuclear cooperation
By Kaveh L Afrasiabi
Iran's objective of getting its nuclear dossier out of the hands of the
United Nations Security Council and back to its "proper forum", the
International Atomic Energy Agency, was leapfrogged last week by the IAEA's
high-level visit to Iran that culminated in a "serious and substantial"
agreement heralding a new level of Iran-IAEA cooperation.
Heinonen, said that Iran agreed on four or five steps. "If the cooperation
continues like this, we hope that the problems will be solved, not now but in a
reasonable future," Heinonen has been quoted as saying.
If all goes as planned, Iran and the IAEA will draw up a plan of action within
the next 60 days to resolve all the "outstanding issues", which include
"information relevant to the assembly of centrifuges, the manufacture of
centrifuge components ... and research and development of centrifuges or
enrichment techniques".
In addition, Iran has agreed to the IAEA's inspection of the heavy-water
reactor under construction in Arak, as well as to short-notice inspection of
the uranium-enrichment facility in Natanz - "beyond the provisions of its
agreement with the IAEA", according to Iran's envoy to the IAEA, Ali Asghar
Soltanieh. He was quick to add that IAEA cameras are in place in Natanz, that
regular IAEA inspections have been taking place in accordance with Iran's
arrangements with the agency, and that Heinonen has stated on record that the
IAEA "has no concern about diversion at Natanz".
"According to Article 12 of the IAEA Charter, a country should be reported to
the UN Security Council only when the inspectors have confirmed a breach of
obligations on the part of that country," Soltanieh insisted in a recent
interview with the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA). "Yet none of the IAEA
reports on Iran make such a claim. All the reports by [IAEA director general
Mohamed] ElBaradei mention gaps or shortcomings in Iran's cooperation, but
never say that Iran has breached its agreement."
At the same time, Soltanieh and other Iranian officials have insisted that Iran
has no intention of complying with the Security Council's demand to suspend its
uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities, warning that more UN sanctions
would adversely affect Iran's cooperation with the IAEA.
More sanctions or back to the IAEA?
UN Security Council Resolution 1747, adopted in March, calls for "further
appropriate measures" should Iran fail to comply "without further delay" with
the council's demands, above all to stop the enrichment activities and the
construction of the reactor in Arak.
Concerning the latter, Soltanieh in his above-mentioned interview pointed out
that radioactive isotopes produced at the Arak facility could serve "200
hospitals" in Iran, and the UN and IAEA have both neglected the "humanitarian"
dimension of that project. He has suggested that if the international community
is serious about halting the Arak reactor, then they should support the
light-water (research) reactor project in Tehran, which requires uranium
enriched to 20% U-235.
Soltanieh has a point, particularly since the "5 plus 1" (permanent Security
Council members plus Germany) incentive package last year promised to furnish
Iran with one or more light-water reactors if Iran shuts down the heavy-water
reactor. But is the US really willing to take the risk of furnishing Iran with
highly enriched uranium? The answer is that this is highly unlikely, which
raises another pertinent question: Hasn't the time come for the US to give up
its dream of halting Iran's nuclear-fuel cycle?
According to Dennis Ross, a former US envoy to the Middle East, in a recent
interview with Die Welt Online, "Many Europeans are asking the US to set aside
its request for the suspension of Iran's uranium enrichment." Clearly, the
United States and Europe are beginning to move apart on this matter, raising
the prospect that the US will soon be the odd man out.
Not surprisingly, the US has given a lukewarm reaction to the news of Iran-IAEA
cooperation, with State Department spokesman Tom Casey maintaining the
traditional US skepticism regarding Iran's compliance with its pledges to the
IAEA. Yet no matter how the US spins it, the "breakthrough" in the Iran-IAEA
talks last week has taken the wind out of the sails of new UN sanctions on Iran
for the foreseeable future, barring unforeseen developments.
Another round of nuclear talks between Iran's lead negotiator, Ali Larijani,
and the European Union's foreign-policy chief, Javier Solana, will take place
shortly, and this may culminate in Iran's re-adoption of the intrusive
Additional Protocol. According to
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