Iran plays down UN nuclear report

FE Team | Published: November 18, 2009 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

Iran has played down a report by the UN's nuclear watchdog that found questions remained unanswered about a nuclear facility near the city of Qom, reports BBC.
The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran must explain the history and purpose of the recently declared site.
But chief Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Asghar Soltaniyeh said the report was "repetitive" and Tehran had handed over all information on the facility.
Iran denies claims by some Western nations it is developing nuclear arms.
A UN team was allowed access to inspect the Qom site last month.
In its report, the IAEA said the delayed declaration of the plant raised concerns about other possible secret sites.
"We will later proceed with installing the required equipment. The facility will go online in 2011.
He said he was "comfortable" with the report, as it confirmed Iran was "fully co-operating" and that the activities at Qom were "in accordance with the IAEA instructions and limitations".
"Inspectors scoured the facility for two complete days. Everything was compatible with the non-proliferation treaty," he said.
The IAEA report on the site near Qom basically confirms that it will be capable of housing some 3,000 centrifuges for uranium enrichment. Iran has said that it is building the plant to protect its technology from potential attack, and the head of the IAEA has said there is nothing to worry about at the site.
But what does worry the governments trying to negotiate with Iran is the secrecy that surrounded the plant. The report says such secrecy does not "contribute to the building of confidence".
In the wider picture, there is still stalemate over the proposal to take Iran's stockpile of low-enriched uranium and enrich it in Russia and France. Senior diplomats from the US, Russia, China and the EU will meet soon as pressure grows for further sanctions on Iran if no agreement on its uranium enrichment can be reached by the end of the year.
Iran revealed the existence of the Fordo enrichment facility, which is being built about 30km (20 miles) north of Qom, in September.
The IAEA report said this did "not contribute to the building of confidence" and "gives rise to questions about whether there were any other nuclear facilities not declared to the agency".
Iran's delay in notification was "inconsistent with its obligations", the report said.