‘Iran file’ should go back to IAEA, says ambassador in Cyprus

The report of the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) about Tehran’s peaceful nuclear energy programme should be sufficient ground for the “Iran file” to be sent back to the IAEA and not be put to discussion at the UN Security Council, said Iran’s Ambassador to Cyprus, Ali Reza Bikdeli.

Speaking at a press conference in Nicosia, Bikdeli explained that Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei’s report has proven beyond any reasonable doubt the peaceful intentions of Iran’s nuclear programme.

“The report shows that we (Iran) have a transparent nuclear policy, with our factories supervised and monitored by network cameras installed at our facilities, which are continuously transmitted to the IAEA, with the additional safeguard that our facilities are open to surprise inspections,” said Bikdeli.

He added that unfortunately public opinion in most countries is based on what the CNN and BBC decide to broadcast, which is why he decided to call a press conference to explain Iran’s side of the story.

According to the IAEA report there is no legal basis to pursue Iran’s case in the Security Council, Bikdeli asserted, “because the dossier was sent to the Security Council with the pretext of the P1 and P2 centrifuges issue which is now resolved.”

The IAEA report has praised Iran for easy access to documents without delay, the ambassador said. It has also announced that Bushehr nuclear power plant fuel will be ready on November 26 and delivered to Iran soon afterwards.

Another part of the IAEA report touches on the enrichment issue and that there is no reason for Iran to halt this process, Bikdeli added.

On the other hand, the U.S. has said that the IAEA report proved Tehran continued to defy UN calls to suspend enrichment and should face further sanctions.

The IAEA report will form the basis for deliberations when representatives of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, along with Germany, meet in Brussels.

On Tuesday, diplomats said Iran had given the IAEA a document containing design information that could be used for parts of a nuclear weapon.

The confidential report by ElBaradei said Iran had made progress in responding to questions about its past nuclear activities.

It also said the answers Iran had given about the history of its centrifuge programme, the machines used to enrich uranium, were consistent with the IAEA’s own findings. A senior UN official had said this was a significant step forward.

However, the report said Iran‘s co-operation with the IAEA had been “reactive” rather than “pro-active” and that the IAEA was continuing to check whether Iran‘s declarations were complete.

 

n      Sanctions

 

Asked by journalists in Nicosia how Tehran will respond to more sanction threats, Bikdeli said Iran will intensify its diplomatic offensive to convince Europeans and other nations not to follow the U.S. call for economic sanctions.

“Iran is adjusting its trade relations and wants to have good relations with all EU27 members, including Cyprus,” he said.

News sources from the UK suggest that Iran is bracing itself for a new round of sanctions after British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for more restrictions on trade.

The official response from the Iranian government speaks of a campaign of “psychological warfare” against it, and point out that the country has been the subject of sanctions since the Islamic revolution in 1979.

It is certainly the case that the new UN sanctions have been hard to agree, despite pressure from Washington. But Gordon Brown’s call could damage the Iranian economy regardless.

Iran’s strongest ally appears to be China and then Russia who have stood by Iran and not allowed the UN Security Council to proceed with full sanctions.

“The nuclear issue is something with which the Americans want to keep the world preoccupied with Iran. Ever since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, the Americans have been accusing Iran. Years ago, they used to accuse us of being terrorists, or of destabilizing the region. Nowadays it’s the nuclear issue. Tomorrow, it will be something else,” concluded Bikdeli.