Straw backs IAEA decision

Thursday, 27 November 2003 12:00 AM

Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has backed the United Nation's condemnation of Iran's 18 years of "lies" over its nuclear weapons programme.

The UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), criticised the state's clandestine enrichment of uranium and plutonium reprocessing.

Both were interpreted as signs of a nuclear arms programme.

The decision by the 35-nation board of governors of the IAEA was an important one, Mr Straw said,

"It is an important step forward in the international community's efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons.

"The resolution is the result of the intensive diplomatic consultations, which followed this visit. We and our partners look forward to continued co-operation with Iran."

Foreign ministers from Britain, France and Germany had formulated a resolution, initially deemed "weak" by the US, which did not make provision for reporting Iran to the UN Security Council.

After a week of discussions, Washington backed down and supported the move.

The IAEA supported the diplomatic initiative.

The message was two-pronged: it condemned Iran's past nuclear ambitions and said future breaches would be reported immediately to the Security Council.

However, it stopped short of sanctions, saying they weren't necessary to force Iran to abide with the "additional" protocol of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

Tehran strongly denies allegations that it intends to acquire nuclear weapons.

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