Despite U.S. Pressures IAEA Does Not Condemn Iran

Iran is a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and all its activities have been under the inspection of the UN nuclear watchdog.

The IAEA Chief Mohamed ElBaradei visited Iran's nuclear sites in February and following his visit in an interview with the CNN said: Iran's nuclear programs are advance, but "are not a weapon program."

The IAEA inspectors have been regularly inspecting Iran's nuclear sites.

ElBaradei presented his report to the agency whose 35-member board of governors started their debate on the report on Tuesday.

Washington welcomed the report, which fell short of condemning Iran the U.S. had been pressuring the agency to do.

The official U.S. reaction was positive, with Washington's ambassador to the United Nations in Vienna Kenneth Brill telling reporters he was "very satisfied", according to Reuters.

But one diplomat told Reuters, "The statement by the board was a reprimand, not a condemnation".

The "awkward directives issued at certain influential capitals on the form, the content and the final conclusion and judgment of the report," is clear Iranian representative to the IAEA, Ali Salehi, said, alluding to the United States pressures on the IAEA to report Iran’s violation of the IAEA agreements.

The board urged Iran to make its nuclear policies "transparent" and accept without delay or conditions more short-notice inspections.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran has fulfilled its obligations under all provisions of the NPT, Salehi told the IAEA high level meeting.

He said: "Iran considers the acquiring, development and use of nuclear weapons inhuman, immoral and against its very basic principles."

Iranian Atomic Energy Organization Spokesman Seyed Khalil Mousavi told the Mehr News Agency that the Islamic Republic of Iran has not failed to report its nuclear activities to the IAEA.

"There is no disagreement between the two sides, there is only some misinterpretation on the interpretation of the text of the agreement," Mousavi said.

The Islamic Republic maintains that it has every right to benefit from atomic energy and that it is not following a policy of aggression.

"My country declared the materials to the agency and it is now under its full safeguards," he said.

Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi has said on record that his country is ready to sign an additional protocol to the NPT, providing for more intrusive, short-notice inspections, on the condition that the Western countries fulfill the obligations entrusted on them by the NPT to provide Iran with the required technology to develop its nuclear energy plans which are squarely meant for peaceful purposes. If a ban on the import of civilian Western nuclear technology to Iran is lifted, Tehran will sign the additional protocol.

Before the issuance of the statement, the United States had pressured the IAEA to condemn Iran's failings in the strongest possible terms and warn Tehran that the world would never allow it to build nuclear weapons.

"The international community must come together to make it very clear to Iran that we will not tolerate construction of a nuclear weapon," U.S. President George W. Bush said before the statement was issued.

Diplomats said the United States had wanted a resolution -- the strongest type of statement by the board – condemning Iran's failures to comply, but had shelved the idea due to insufficient support.

The diplomat said Iran and 14 IAEA board members belonging to the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) did not agree with the call for unconditional acceptance of stricter IAEA inspections, Reuters said.

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