U.S. and Elbaradei Attempting to Delay Final Decision on Iran’s Nuclear Program

November 22, 2003 - 0:0
VIENNA (Mehr News Agency) – Reports indicate that the United States, with the support of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Mohamed ElBaradei, is trying to extend discussions at the IAEA Board of Governors meeting in Vienna in order to delay the agency’s final decision on Iran’s nuclear program, according to the Mehr News Agency correspondent in Vienna.

The U.S. is attempting to prove that Iran has not abided by all the terms of the September resolution of the IAEA Board.

Also, the remarks of diplomats in Vienna show that the IAEA Board members have agreed to Europe's proposed resolution, although all the points that Iran and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) countries sought to include are not mentioned in the draft.

Germany's representative to the IAEA told the Mehr News Agency correspondent that Germany is being pressured by both Iran and the U.S. and its allies in the agency, adding that it is taking the views of both sides into consideration.

He emphatically denied the rumors that a deal had been reached between Europe and the U.S. on the IAEA resolution about the Iranian nuclear program.

Also, according to the latest reports, Europe's draft resolution is complete.

Informed sources say that the only point of disagreement between the European Union and Iran is the fact that Clause A of the draft resolution criticizes Iran for its previous failures in regard to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). This is the same clause that the U.S. sought to have added to the resolution with the help of ElBaradei.