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Iran Press: Report Speaks of Tehran's "Major Victory" at IAEA Meeting

Posted on: Monday, 28 November 2005, 06:00 CST

Text of unattributed report under the headline: "Iran's victory in the Board of Governors of International Atomic Energy Authority", published by the Iranian daily newspaper Farhang-e Ashti website on 26 November

The meeting of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Authority [IAEA] on Thursday [24 November] carried some good omens for Iran. The members of the Board of Governors refrained from issuing a resolution against Iran, and this was because the reports by the IAEA Secretary General, as well as the activities and performance of the Iranian officials underlined Iran's serious cooperation with the IAEA. Many news agencies have described the outcome of the recent Board of Governors meeting as a great victory for Iran. A senior member of the Iranian delegation at the Board of Governors made this comment on the subject: Maintaining calm and the present atmosphere will be a prelude to preparing the grounds for fruitful negotiations, and we witnessed the first step towards that objective in the meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors.

Mohammad Sa'idi went on to say: The important point is that confidence-building cannot take place without a proper foundation and basis, and it must be shaped on the basis of international rules and conventions, to which both sides of the negotiations must be fully committed. The deputy head of the Iranian Atomic Energy Organisation for International Affairs added: In both his verbal and written reports, Muhammad Al-Baradi'i, the secretary-general of the International Atomic Energy Authority showed that Iran has shown full cooperation with the Agency in the past few years, particularly in the last few months, and as a result, many fundamental and key issues have now been clarified for the IAEA. He said: Of course, the IAEA is saying that there are still some unanswered questions about some minor issues in the Iranian nuclear programme, and they have asked for our cooperation to resolve these as well.

The Iranian victory in the Board of Governors

This senior member of the Iranian delegation in the International Atomic Energy Authority said: We will certainly respond positively to the logical demands of the Agency, on the basis of our commitments and undertakings. In addition, we will also continue our full cooperation with the IAEA with regards to the safeguards issues after the conclusion of the Board of Governors' meeting in November [as written].

Commenting on the future talks of Iran with the three European powers, Sa'idi told the correspondent of ISNA (the Iranian Students News Agency): We have always emphasised the continuation of the negotiations for finding a logical solution which on the one hand safeguards Iran's rights on the basis of international treaties and conventions, and on the other hand, alleviates the concerns that some European countries have about the Iranian nuclear energy programme for peaceful purposes.

Sa'idi went on to say: Of course, Europe too must win the trust and confidence of Iran, while Iran, for its part, must show that its nuclear fuel production programme is merely aimed at meeting the demands for fuel at its nuclear power stations. He added: In the IAEA resolution, reference has been made to Iran's right to enjoy nuclear technology for peaceful purposes, and at the same time, the resolution emphasises that the measures adopted so far by Iran, including its suspension of some nuclear activities, were voluntary in nature and were not legally binding. Furthermore, the resolution encourages the Iranian and European sides to consider negotiations as the best possible method and channel for the resolution of their outstanding issues.

This senior member of the Iranian delegation also said: The statement by the head of the Board of Governors does not have any legal weight and obligation for the member states of the IAEA, and in fact, it is seen as the weakest kind of decision making in the Board of Governors in connection with the nuclear safeguards issue. Referring to the final paragraph of the statement by the head of the IAEA Board of Governors, Sa'idi said: The interesting point is that in the said statement, the position of America has been put forward, as the stance of only that country which does not have the support of the other countries. This clearly shows that America is very much isolated and on its own in terms of its position [on the Iranian nuclear programme].

He said the tone of the resolution was positive, and then commented on the proposal which is being put forward by Russia to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue. He added: The proposal which is being forward seems more like an idea, whose finer principles and details have not yet been fully clarified. Sa'idi went on to say: As a rule, we will give due consideration to any idea which respects the rights of Iran within the framework of international laws.

In the wake of Iran's achievement of this major victory, on the sidelines of the meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors in Vienna, [Western] diplomatic sources and information officials have claimed that Iran is getting read to start uranium enrichment in Natanz. According to a report by ILNA (Iranian Labour News Agency), Western diplomats and information officials have claimed that Iran is making plans for putting the uranium [processing] programme into practice. Quoting these sources, Reuters news agency reported: In spite of the existing pressures to dissuade Iran from acquiring sensitive nuclear technology, Tehran is preparing itself to start the uranium enrichment process. Furthermore, the report alleges: Such a plan will bring about a defeat for Russia's efforts to resolve the crisis through the moderate proposal that it has put forward in connection with the Iranian nuclear programme. In addition, commenting on the outcome of the consultations about Iran, the Spokesman of the French Foreign Affairs Ministry said he did not believe the resumption of negotiations with Iran was an unlikely outcome. He added: At the present, I cannot confirm the validity of the reports published about a joint meeting of Iran, the European troika and Russia on 6th December in order to review the Iranian nuclear dossier.

Furthermore, Rajmah Hussain, the Malaysian head of the Non- Aligned Movement [in the Board of Governors, presumably], had this to say about the Iranian nuclear dossier: The Non-Aligned Movement favours the resumption of negotiations between Iran and the three European countries.

He went on to say: The Non-Aligned Movement members and all the sides in general favour more time for the negotiations parties in order to help the dialogue process.

It should be noted that the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Authority has ended its work after five days of talks in Vienna. The above mentioned allegations by the Western diplomats, as well as the statements by the representatives of other countries were all made at a time when Dr Mohammad Sa'idi has described the status and position of Iran in the IAEA in the following manner: At the present juncture, the IAEA has a completely clear picture about the status of the Iranian nuclear programme.

Source: BBC Monitoring Middle East

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