Iran Freezes Nuclear Program Inspections

VIENNA, Austria – Iran froze international inspections of its nuclear facilities indefinitely Saturday, hours after the U.N. atomic agency issued a resolution censuring Tehran for hiding suspect activities.

Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, Hasan Rowhani, described the resolution of the International Atomic Energy Agency as “unfair and deceitful.”

“Today, IAEA inspectors were expected to arrive in Iran,” Rowhani told a press conference in Iran’s capital, Tehran. “We will not allow them to come until Iran sets a new date for their visit. This is a protest by Iran in reaction to the passage of the resolution.”

An agreement that Iran signed last year – welcomed at the time by the IAEA – empowers U.N. inspectors to inspect Iran’s nuclear facilities at any time and without notice.

Asked whether the freeze was indefinite, Rowhani said “yes.” A day earlier, Tehran had announced a temporary freeze. Asked when inspectors might visit again, he replied: “It could be less than six weeks. It could be more than six weeks. we have not set a date.”

Saturday’s resolution praised Iran’s increased openness to inspections but said it “deplores” recent discoveries of uranium enrichment equipment and other suspicious activities that Tehran had failed to reveal.

Iran’s temporary suspension of inspections Friday had heightened tensions the a board of governors’ meeting, where the 35 IAEA members debated for days how to censure Iran over its failure to declare all its nuclear secrets.

Nonaligned members of the IAEA had tried to tone down the language of the resolution, while Western powers – foremost the United States – wanted to send Iran a harsh warning.

Washington suspects Iran is undertaking a secret program to build nuclear weapons. Iran denies this and argues its nuclear program is only for generating electricity.

Striking a balance, the 13-nation nonaligned group had dropped most of its objections but pushed through changed wording that effectively defers the threat of Security Council action against Iran until the board meets again in June.

Still, much of the language was critical, reflecting shared concerns by most board members about Iran’s nuclear activities and its uneven record of cooperation with the IAEA.

The resolution, made available to The Associated Press, expresses concern that Iran and Libya appeared to have been supplied by the same black market network.

It also notes “with serious concern” that the board still does not have “the complete and final picture of Iran’s past and present nuclear program,” needed by the IAEA to dispel suspicions that Iran had a weapons agenda.

Significantly – unlike an earlier draft pushed by the United States and its allies – it made no mention of military involvement in Iran’s nuclear program. Iran’s military acknowledged this week that it had built uranium enrichment centrifuges but said they were for civilian use.

In Tehran, Rowhani the IAEA board of governors of passing a resolution that failed to take account of Iran’s behavior toward the U.N. agency.

“Iran’s comprehensive cooperation with the IAEA has not been properly reflected in the resolution, and there is a big gap between realities on the ground and what is said in the resolution,” said Rowhani, who chairs the Supreme National Security Council.

“Unfortunately, the views of nonaligned countries, as well as China and Russia, have not been taken into consideration.”

Earlier, in comments indirectly critical of the United States and its assertion that Tehran wants to make nuclear weapons, Iranian delegation head Amir H. Zamaninia blasted the harsh phrases in the resolution, saying they were nothing but a “tool to serve a narrow-minded, increasingly isolated conviction.”

“Iran’s (nuclear) program is exclusively peaceful,” he told the meeting.

Pirooz Hosseini, Iran’s permanent IAEA representative, blasted the “one-sided resolution with vicious words,” but said the inspections would resume “as quickly as possible.”

U.S. chief delegate Kenneth Brill accused Iran of “continuing to pursue a policy of denial, deception and delay.”

“Is it possible that, even as we meet, squads of Iranian technicians are working at still undeclared (nuclear) sites to tile over, paint over, bury, burn or cart away incriminating evidence, so that those sanitized locations can finally be identified to the agency as new evidence of Iran’s full cooperation and transparency?” he asked.

Diplomats familiar with the work of IAEA said that – if it remains in place for any length of time – Iran’s move to freeze inspections would be a huge obstacle to the agency’s efforts to deliver a judgment by June on the nature of Tehran’s nuclear past and present.

An IAEA report last month accused Iran of hiding evidence of nuclear experiments and noted the discovery of traces of radioactive polonium, which can be used in nuclear weapons.

The report also expressed concern about the discovery of a previously undisclosed advanced P-2 centrifuge system for enriching uranium.