Iran demands 'professional' work from IAEA at September meeting
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
Tehran, Aug 22, IRNA -- Iran on Sunday urged the world nuclear watchdog to act `professionally` and not be influenced by certain powers at next month`s meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors in Vienna. "If the (International Atomic Energy) Agency behaves professionally, given that all ambiguities have been removed, there is no reason for Iran`s file not being put on its normal course," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters. "We have cooperated with utmost sincerity and it is up to the agency to act professionally or be influenced by certain powers," the official added. Asefi dismissed `efforts to deprive Iran of its legitimate right` to acquire nuclear technology as `unacceptable and ineffective`. Iran says the program is in accordance with the country`s bid to produce 7,000 megawatts of electricity in the next 20 years, when the country`s oil and gas reserves become overstretched. The country has cooperated closely with the European `big three` -- Germany, France and Britain -- to answer outstanding questions about the country`s nuclear program. In what has been described as a confidence-building measure, Tehran has voluntarily suspended uranium enrichment and manufacture of centrifuge components. Moreover, the Islamic Republic has signed an additional protocol to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT), allowing snap inspections of its nuclear activities. Top national security official has however warned that Iran may reconsider its commitments to the International Atomic Energy Agency if Tehran is declared to have violated the agency`s resolutions at next month`s IAEA meeting in Vienna. The IAEA Board of Governors deplored what it called Tehran`s failure to cooperate fully with IAEA inspectors in its June meeting. Head of the Supreme National Security Council`s foreign policy committee Hossein Mousavian said, "If the Board of Governors` resolutions follow the same trend as before, we may reconsider our agreements while maintaining Iran`s commitment to the NPT and safeguards treaties." Asefi said, "Instead of depriving us of our legitimate right to acquire peaceful nuclear technology, the Europeans had better help us use this right for peaceful intentions." The Foreign Ministry spokesman said the Europeans made a mistake when they pulled out of a deal to build a nuclear power plant in the southern city of Bushehr, which is now being completed by Russia. "Europe could have cooperated with us to construct Bushehr atomic plant and supervise work on that. But, now they had better cooperate with us through understanding. "The Europeans made the mistake when they quit the construction of Bushehr plant, which they themselves had proposed (to build)," Asefi said. Construction of Bushehr power plant has already cost Iran billions of dollars. The German firm Siemens and its subsidiary Kraftwerke Union (KWU) began work on the plant in 1974, but stopped following the Islamic Revolution in 1979. At that time, Unit-One was 90 percent complete, with 60 percent of the equipment installed, and Unit-Two was 50 percent complete. During the 1980 to 1988 imposed war with Iraq, the Bushehr reactors were repeatedly targeted by Iraq, which bombed the plant at least six times. Starting in the mid-1980s, Iran approached several nuclear suppliers about the possibility of completing the Bushehr-1 reactor. A consortium of West German, Spanish and Argentine companies bid to complete it in the late 1980s, but the deal was never completed owing to US pressure. In a similar deal, Iran signed a protocol in February 1990 with Spanish companies to complete the plant and supply the reactor`s fuel, but they later canceled the deal citing US political pressure. 2323/2322/1432
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