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| Iran |
| Iran Opens Talks on Nuclear Inspections |
| 2003-10-20 |
| Under pressure to meet a U.N. deadline, Iran began detailed negotiations Saturday on allowing U.N. inspectors unfettered access to its nuclear facilities. I’m betting this is less than it seems. The talks with the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency ``may take several days, (but) I’m optimistic that (we) will reach an agreement,’’ Iran’s representative to the IAEA, Ali Akbar Salehi, told The Associated Press. The IAEA has set a deadline of Oct. 31 for Iran to prove it has no secret program for producing nuclear weapons. If the agency finds that Iran has failed to respond satisfactorily, it is expected to refer the matter to the U.N. Security Council, which could lead to the imposition of sanctions Except that the French have already said that this won’t happen. The talks came after IAEA head Mohammed ElBaradei met Iranian officials on Thursday to press Tehran on the deadline, saying the agency still has ``outstanding issues’’ to resolve over Iran’s nuclear program. ElBaradei said after his meetings that Iran promised greater access for IAEA inspectors. He said inspectors were allowed to visit one As I recall, Saddam was also jabbering about "sovereignty" and "state secrets". Wonder if the black turbans will start talking about presidental palaces? The head of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy committee, Mohsen Mirdamadi, told the AP on Thursday that ``Iran’s case should not go before the Security Council.’’ "No, no, certainly not!" ``If allowing inspections of military sites resolves this problem,’’ Mirdamadi said, ``then we should do it.’’ Iranian hard-liners, however, have urged the government to stand firm against world pressure over the nuclear program and even to withdraw from the nonproliferation treaty. Wonder if Jacques will allow the EU to say anything about that if it happens? |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #3 I say let the IAF 'inspect' all six sites; I'm sure they'll be thorough. |
| Posted by: Raj 2003-10-20 12:23:06 PM |
| #2 Can I get a "YAR"? |
| Posted by: mojo 2003-10-20 11:29:43 AM |
| #1 getting a little nervous are they? |
| Posted by: B 2003-10-20 8:26:07 AM |