Iran defiant as UN plans atomic weapons deadline

The UN nuclear watchdog looked set to impose a deadline on Iran to prove it is not running a covert atomic weapons program as Tehran warned it could end cooperation with the organisation.

In Tehran, Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi denounced the “arrogance” and “extremist posture” of certain countries over Iran’s nuclear program in a statement published yesterday by the state news agency IRNA. Mr Kharazi also warned that Tehran might reconsider its cooperation with the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

But IAEA chief Mohamed El-Baradei, speaking as the 35 member states of the IAEA’s governing board went into talks to reach an agreement for a resolution, said: “I think there is broad agreement the (IAEA) would like to see a deadline by which Iran should present all the information we need to have in order to bring this issue to closure.

“I think Iran should come with an immediate, complete declaration on its own initiative of all nuclear activities to make it easier for us to finish the job.”

Iranian representative Ali Akbar Salehi said: “We do not accept deadlines. You cannot impose deadlines on a sovereign country.”

The United States on Tuesday had accused Iran of being in breach of safeguards agreements from the nuclear non-proliferation treaty but supported a proposed “last chance” for Tehran to clear up questions about its atomic program.

France, Germany and Britain jointly called on Iran to fully disclose its contested nuclear program by the end of October, in a draft resolution submitted Tuesday to the IAEA board of governors which has been meeting in Vienna since Monday.

The resolution called on “Iran to provide accelerated cooperation and full transparency” to the IAEA.

Tehran insists it has fully cooperated with the IAEA and denies it is trying to develop nuclear weapons.