Posted on 09/15/2005 3:55:06 AM PDT by F14 Pilot
LONDON, September 15 (IranMania) - UN atomic watchdog chief Mohamed ElBaradei has urged the United States to give Iran one last chance to halt suspected weapons-related nuclear activities but Washington is insisting on immediate UN Security Council action, diplomats said.
"US ambassador Gregory Schulte asked him (ElBaradei) on Wednesday not to lobby for this (a delay)" at the Vienna-based UN watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), a diplomat who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue told AFP.
The United States and the European Union are pushing for the IAEA to refer Iran to the Security Council at United Nations headquarters in New York, when the IAEA's 35-nation board of governors begins meeting in Vienna on Monday.
The British delegation to the IAEA is Thursday to give a series of presentations to different board members explaining why the EU has no confidence in the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program, diplomats said.
Still, ElBaradei told US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in a telephone conversation last week it would be better to give Iran a deadline for ceasing uranium conversion work, rather than going for referral to the Council now, as the IAEA board is split over the issue, a diplomat said.
"Rice said this was not a good idea," another diplomat said.
US and IAEA spokespersons refused to comment.
Conversion is the first step in making enriched uranium which can be fuel for nuclear power reactors or bomb material.
Russia, China and several non-aligned states oppose sending Iran before the Security Council, which could impose sanctions on Tehran, as they say the right to make nuclear fuel is guaranteed under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
"It would be better to find a compromise that can keep everyone engaged rather than splitting the board," a diplomat said.
The diplomat said that since Iran was only converting uranium into a feedstock gas and not actually making enriched uranium, "it is not that critical that the matter is solved at next week's board meeting. We can wait another few weeks, or another few months, as long as the Iranians don't go beyond what they are doing now."
The IAEA on August 11 called on Iran to stop nuclear fuel activities in order to resume talks with the European Union on guaranteeing its nuclear program is peaceful, as Tehran claims it is.
The United States believes Tehran is using its civilian nuclear program to hide atomic weapons development and feels the time has come to make a stand on the issue.
At a UN summit in New York Wednesday, US President George W. Bush expressed concern over Iran's nuclear program to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as Washington moved to rally support against the Islamic republic.
A diplomat said the United States was appealing to countries not favoring Security Council referral to change their minds.
Washington was asking India to show leadership against Iran as a proliferation threat since New Delhi wants Washington to help it get a seat on the Security Council.
Washington was warning Russia that it could end up isolated in blocking referral and trying to get Pakistan and Brazil, which both have strong nuclear programs, to wait until they see developments at the board meeting before deciding what to do.
Meanwhile, French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin "strongly" called in New York for Iran to keep its nuclear non-proliferation promises or face action before the Security Council.
Iran said Monday it would cooperate fully with IAEA inspectors provided it was allowed to make nuclear fuel, according to a document presented to IAEA board members and obtained by AFP.
The IAEA, which monitors compliance with the NPT and has since February 2003 been investigating Iran's nuclear program, has never been forced to vote on a compliance issue as it uses consensus decisions to give measures the weight of a united international community.
Western nations almost certainly have enough votes to get the IAEA board to send Iran to the Security Council but diplomats warn against forcing this.
"A vote on this issue would be very damaging so there is pressure to move ahead only with a consensus," a diplomat said.
European diplomats said if they got the issue to New York, they would not initially ask the Security Council, which unlike the IAEA has enforcement powers, to impose sanctions but would merely recommend a Council "president's statement" as the goal would be to get Iran to heed the IAEA calls.
What ever! Impose sanctions and then give them as many passes as We gave Saddam. That'll give them years to develope their weapons.
Until, I presume, the next "one last chance". Neither the UN, nor Europe has the guts to take on Iran. And I'm beginning to worry about our willingness to do so.
I couldn't say it better myself.
The Koran says it is permissible to lie to the infidels to conceal your plans. You can take the muslim out of the middle east but you cant be a muslim and have alligence to any thing but Islam or take sides against another muslim.
and he gave North Korea the Nuclear tech that caused this problem.
that is Muslim (the real danger in the world).
A muslims will always side with a muslim no matter what.
How much time would "one last chance" take?
How long would it take for there to be repercussions for failing that "last chance."
Going by what has happened so far, it would be a least a year.
Then 3 to 10 years for sanctions to change the Mullahs minds.
ie. they would already have several (or several dozen bombs) by then.
They have had enough time already. The "one last chance" should be with sanctions already voted on and approved and in place.
We've taken enough "chances" already.
the Russians france germany are all in it for the money and nothing else. they have invested in another loser and dont want to be stung like they were in Iraq.
And after that "one last chance," another and another and another...
Didn't we go through this once before?
and then what?
to finish making their nukes.
Maybe he wants to put the mullahs on "double secret probation".
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