The comments by U.S. diplomat Robert Wood to the board of the International Atomic Energy Agency signaled Washington’s growing frustration at a lack of progress in the IAEA’s inquiry into possible military dimensions to Tehran’s nuclear program.

Iran – which was first reported to the UN Security Council over its nuclear program by the IAEA’s 35-nation board in 2006 and then was hit by UN sanctions – rejects suspicions it is on a covert quest for atomic bomb capability.

But its refusal to curb nuclear work with both civilian and military applications, and its lack of openness with the IAEA, have drawn tough Western punitive measures and a threat of pre-emptive military strikes by Israel.

A year ago, the IAEA published a report with a trove of intelligence indicating past, and some possibly continuing, research in Iran that could be relevant for nuclear weapons.

The IAEA has since tried to gain access to Iranian sites, officials and documents it says it needs for the inquiry, but so far without any concrete results in a series of meetings with Iran since January. The two sides will meet again in December.

In his statement, Wood requested IAEA Director-General Yukiya Amano to say in his next quarterly report on Iran, likely due in late February, whether Tehran has taken “any substantive steps” to address the agency’s concerns.

“If by March Iran has not begun substantive cooperation with the IAEA, the United States will work with other board members to pursue appropriate board action, and would urge the board to consider reporting this lack of progress to the UN Security Council,” Wood said, according to a copy of his statement.

“Iran cannot be allowed to indefinitely ignore its obligations … Iran must act now, in substance,” Wood said.

Amano earlier told the board that there had been no progress in his agency’s year-long push to clarify concerns about suspected atom bomb research in Iran, but said he would continue his efforts.

A simple majority in the IAEA board would be required to refer an issue to the UN Security Council, which has imposed four sanctions resolutions on Iran since 2006.

It is unclear whether Russia and China – which have criticized unilateral Western sanctions on Iran – would back any U.S. initiative to report Iran again to the Security Council.

Wood later told reporters he hoped the December talks between the IAEA and Iran would be fruitful. But, he added, “I have my doubts about the sincerity of Iran.”

The 27-nation European Union told the board that Iran’s “procrastination” was unacceptable. “Iran must act now, in a substantive way, to address the serious and continuing international concerns on its nuclear program,” it said.

Iran’s ambassador to the IAEA, Ali Asghar Soltanieh criticied what he called “political noise” and “pressure” from the United States and the EU.

Diplomacy between Iran and the powers – the United States, China, Russia, France, Germany, and Britain – has been deadlocked since a June meeting that ended without success.

Both sides now say they want to resume talks soon, after the re-election of U.S. President Barack Obama, and diplomats expects a new meeting in Istanbul in December or January.

Iran is ready for a “face-saving” negotiated solution to the nuclear dispute, but the West must accept the reality that Tehran would never suspend uranium enrichment, Soltanieh said.Refined uranium can be used to fuel nuclear energy plants, Iran’s stated aim, and also provide bomb material if processed further, which the West suspects is Iran’s ultimate aim

The West wants Iran to suspend enrichment, but Iran is showing no sign of backing down.

Iran “has provocatively snubbed the international community by expanding its enrichment capacity in defiance of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions,” Wood said.

5 Comments on "U.S. gives Iran until March to cooperate with IAEA"

BillT on Sun, 2nd Dec 2012 1:16 am 



So, Iran is doing legally what Israel has done illegally.

Does this mean World War 3 will begin in March? The end of the Empire of America and the real start of it’s slide to the 3rd world along with Europe and Japan?

Or is this more BS from the propaganda mill called ‘news’ in the US?

MrEnergyCzar on Sun, 2nd Dec 2012 3:56 am 



Why do they have to March, why not next week?

MrEnergyCzar

Keith_McClary on Sun, 2nd Dec 2012 5:49 am 



Iran has “obligations” only because they have signed the non-proliferation treaty. The yanks have no problems with India or the J-State.

GregT on Sun, 2nd Dec 2012 8:35 am 



So the largest Empire in the history of the world, the only country to ever use nuclear weapons on a foreign civilian population, is the country that is morally obligated to tell the rest of the world what to do?

Come on people. It is time to wake up and start thinking for yourselves.

Arthur on Sun, 2nd Dec 2012 8:54 pm 



Eisenhauer, no angel himself, to put it very mildly (read ‘Other losses’ by the Canadian Jacques Barzun) deplored the use of two nuclear bombs on Japan, since Japan was ready to surrender and the US had lost uncessary ‘moral prestige’. And now the US threathens to bomb Iran, because it obeys international rules and all US intelligence agencies say that there is no proof that Iran is working towards a nuclear bomb. But the US has no choice. If you spend 50% of the total planetary ‘defense’ budget on weapons, than you would be stupid if you did not to try to get return on that investment. So there we go again… But that’s OK, I do not think they have the nerve to nuke Iran, so let them have their ‘Operation Blazing Saddle’ and the famous ‘holy cow’ sorties (Peter Arnett, Bagdad), so Iran can initiate a premature end of the oil age by devastating the oil-infrastructure in the entire Gulf-region (nothing is more vulnerable and impossible to rebuild than a refinery), that for a large part will never be rebuild and oil will be on a permanent 200$ level, encouraging everybod to run to the renewables hills. Which would be a good thing. The Russians will be celebrating that event, very much unlike the Chinese. Japan in 1941 had an economy of merely 10% of that of the US when Roosevelt pushed them in the corner to the extent that they had no choice but attacking PH in order to get the oil elsewhere after Roosevelt had imposed his total oil embargo, demanding nothing less than the total dismantling of the Japanese empire. China has an economy of 50% of that of the US and has too many people anyway, no necessity for them to be prudent here. Wait and see what they will do if cornered and deprived of their oil. It is not going to be pretty.