Home>News Center>World
         
 

EU aims to avert Iran nuclear crisis-diplomats
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-05-21 09:43

The EU's three biggest powers, eager to avert an international crisis, hope to persuade Iran next week not to resume sensitive nuclear work that could be used to make atom bombs, diplomats said on Friday.


Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Hassan Rohani speaks to Reuters correspondent during an interview in Tehran May 18, 2005. [Reuters]

The European Union wants Iran to keep its uranium enrichment program frozen at least until its June 17 presidential election, after which it would hope to resume negotiations with Tehran, EU diplomats said.

But the diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the task will not be easy when the foreign ministers of France, Britain and Germany meet Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Hassan Rohani, in Europe next week.

"The question is: what will the Europeans offer the Iranians to keep them at the negotiating table? The Iranians will have to bring something concrete back with them," one diplomat said.

Diplomats said the meeting would probably be in Geneva on Wednesday, though both the date and venue could change.

Iran strongly denies U.S. accusations it is trying to build atomic weapons, saying its facilities are for civilian energy. It agreed to suspend enrichment activities in November as a trust-building measure following talks with the EU three.

But an exiled dissident on Friday accused Iran of smuggling in a material to use in weapons, including nuclear arms.

Alireza Jafarzadeh, who has reported accurately in the past on Iran's hidden nuclear facilities and activities, said the substance was a graphite compound, "ceramic matrix composite."

"Iran is smuggling it into the country for its nuclear weapons program," he told Reuters, saying his information came from "well-placed sources inside Iran."

Iranian officials were not immediately available to comment.

RUSSIAN HELP

Keeping the suspension on enrichment in place at least until the election would ensure a positive report from the U.N. nuclear watchdog, which meets on June 13, and would undermine any U.S. drive to refer it to the U.N. Security Council, diplomats in Vienna said.

But the EU trio warned Rohani in a letter last week that if Tehran resumed any enrichment-related work they would back U.S. calls to refer its case to the Security Council, which could consider imposing sanctions.

The EU has demanded Iran end its entire uranium enrichment program in exchange for economic and political incentives.

Rohani has said Iran would never give up enrichment and would soon start preparing raw uranium for the process, which purifies it for use in nuclear power plants or weapons.

Iran proposed a compromise to the EU trio -- having Russia temporarily carry out the sensitive final enrichment of uranium after Iran has processed it at an Isfahan plant, diplomats said.

While the idea might not be realistic, it was the kind of thing that could be discussed for a while to keep the Iranians at the negotiating table, diplomats said.

Washington insisted Iran should stop enrichment forever, but avoided rejecting the proposal on Russia outright.

"The agreement that the Europeans have already with Iran is quite clear on suspension of all conversion and enrichment- related activities, and we would expect that to be respected," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said.

Russia, which is building the Bushehr atomic reactor in Iran, has called on Tehran to give up the fuel program. It has promised fuel for Bushehr and to take spent fuel back so Iran could not extract bomb-grade plutonium from it.

Moscow supports Iran's ambitions for a nuclear energy program, but has repeatedly said developing atomic fuel processes made no economic sense for Tehran.

Iranian negotiators have rejected the few incentives offered to Iran to stop enrichment, such as access to spare aircraft parts, as being insignificant.

Senior official Hossein Mousavian said this week Tehran wanted something substantial -- like a promise from the EU three to supply 10 full-scale atomic power reactors.

But with U.S. sanctions in place, no European firm would jeopardizing U.S. business by building a reactor in Iran, EU diplomats said.

"The EU can't force its companies to do anything," said one EU three diplomat. "Our companies are not front companies for an Iranian nuclear weapons program."



 
  Today's Top News     Top World News
 

Export textile tariffs rocket to 400 per cent

 

   
 

Bush pledges probe into Saddam pictures

 

   
 

Mainland offers tourism good-will for Taiwan

 

   
 

44 remain missing in Hebei coal mine blast

 

   
 

Sacked soccer coach wins wide support

 

   
 

Old soldier does penance for past atrocities

 

   
  Bush pledges probe into Saddam pictures
   
  Italian hostage killed in Afghanistan
   
  Iraq, Iran blame Saddam for Kuwait invasion
   
  Anti-US anger in Afghanistan overshadows Karzai trip to Washington
   
  South Korea makes strides in human cloning
   
  Sumatra quake shook earth's total surface
   
 
  Go to Another Section  
 
 
  Story Tools  
   
  News Talk  
  Are the Republicans exploiting the memory of 9/11?  
Advertisement
         
主站蜘蛛池模板: 亚洲中文无码av永久| 国产AV一区二区三区传媒| www.天天操.com| 日本精品www色| 亚洲图片欧美文学小说激情| 精品国产免费一区二区三区 | 国产精品午夜国产小视频| 一级做a爱片久久蜜桃| 日本精品视频在线播放| 亚洲国产精品无码久久青草| 秋霞电影网一区二区三区| 国产三区视频在线观看| 欧美又粗又长又爽做受| 国内精品伊人久久久久妇| 一级毛片试看三分钟| 日本在线观看成人小视频| 亚洲aⅴ在线无码播放毛片一线天| 火车上荫蒂添的好舒服视频| 午夜福利一区二区三区高清视频| 韩国三级hd中文字幕| 国产精品igao视频| 91香蕉国产线观看免| 好男人好资源在线观看免费播放高清| 久久久久AV综合网成人| 暖暖免费高清日本韩国视频| 亚洲成年www| 狠狠色丁香久久综合五月| 午夜看黄网站免费| 芬兰bbw搡bbbb搡bbbb| 国产成人精品午夜福利在线播放| 777奇米四色| 女人18毛片a级毛片免费视频| 中文字幕乱码人妻无码久久 | 亚欧免费无码aⅴ在线观看| 欧美高清视频www夜色资源| 免费在线观看色| 美国一级毛片在线观看| 国产乱妇无码大片在线观看| 黄色a级片网站| 国产欧美日韩亚洲一区二区三区| 67194在线午夜亚洲|