Western Resistance: Iran: UN Nuclear Inspections May Be Halted

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October 10, 2005

Iran: UN Nuclear Inspections May Be Halted

An announcement made on Friday by Iran's foreign minister, Manouchehr Mottaki on state television made it clear that Iran would be entitled to stop inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency, unless it changes its resolution against Iran in a meeting to be held in November, according to the Guardian

Last month, the UN agency passed a resolution warning Iran it would be referred to the UN Security Council for potential sanctions unless it acted to dispel fears surrounding its nuclear program.

After visiting the Gulf states of Qatar, Kuwait the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain to gather support for its position, Mottaki announced on Iranian TV that "It would be the right of Iran to discontinue confidence-building measures, including (unfettered inspections), is the resolution is not amended at the next meeting of the IAEA.

The US is convinced that Iran is planning to build nuclear weapons, and other evidence seems to support this.

Across Iran on Friday, tens of thousands of demonstrators showed their solidarity with the Iranian government's position.

Uranium enrichment does not violate the terms of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, to which Iran is a signatory. But key IAEA members, including the U.S. and European nations, want Iran to permanently scrap enrichment plans as a confidence-building measure, something Tehran says it is not prepared to do.

Talks between Britain, France and Germany on behalf of the EU collapsed in early August after Iran restarted its uranium reprocessing activities at its facility in Isfahan. This had been suspended under a deal worked out in November 2004. There are no more deals to be made, it seems.

Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at October 10, 2005 2:05 PM