IAEA chief: Iran nuke probe at 'dead end,' Tehran not cooperating

[Chris]

IAEA chief: Iran nuke probe at 'dead end,' Tehran not cooperating
By News Agencies
Head of UN watchdog criticizes Iran for trying to change plan endorsed by six world powers.

VIENNA - The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog said Thursday that his probe into allegations Iran tried to make nuclear arms has reached a dead end because Tehran is not cooperating. International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei was also critical of Iran for trying to change a plan endorsed by six world powers - the U.S., Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany - that would stymie Tehran's ability to make nuclear weapons. The proposal calls for Iran to ship out most of its enriched uranium and have it returned as nuclear fuel.

ElBaradei was speaking at the start of the a meeting of the IAEA's 35-nation board of governors, who will likely vote on a resolution demanding that Iran immediately mothball the uranium enrichment site it kept secret for years. Diplomats forecast majority approval for the resolution in a vote Thursday or Friday, in what would be its first action against Iran in almost four years. The move reflects dismay over Iran's September disclosure of a second enrichment site it had been building clandestinely for two years, and frustration at Iran's holdup of the IAEA-brokered plan to give it fuel for its nuclear medical program if it parts with enriched uranium that could be used in weapons.

more...............IAEA chief: Iran nuke probe at 'dead end,' Tehran not cooperating - Haaretz - Israel News

[Keith]

And the clock continues to tick.

[Chris]

Iran Focus

Mohamed ElBaradei tells Atomic Energy Agency he has hit ‘dead end’ with Iran
Friday, 27 November 2009
The Times
Catherine Philp, Diplomatic Correspondent

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said yesterday that he had reached a “dead end” in his investigation into Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons programme. The remark from Mohamed ElBaradei, at the agency’s Board of Governors meeting in Vienna, came as member nations prepared to vote on a key resolution condemning the Tehran regime. Mr ElBaradei, who has three days left in the job, has been dogged by criticism over his perceived weakness in dealing with Tehran and internal infighting at the agency over a reluctance to release incriminating evidence. Yesterday, however, he criticised Iran for rejecting an internationally endorsed plan to send its nuclear fuel abroad, delaying the moment it could manufacture a nuclear bomb.

The agency’s resolution is expected to be passed today with the backing of all members of the E3+3; the international negotiating group on Iran comprising the US, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany. It demands that Iran should mothball the enrichment plant at Qom and confirm that it has no further hidden nuclear sites. The resolution is to be reported to the Security Council.

[Chris]

Iran Focus

Iran threatens minimum co-operation with IAEA
Thursday, 26 November 2009

BERLIN (AFP) — Iran will reduce co-operation with the IAEA to a minimum if the UN atomic watchdog passes a resolution condemning its nuclear programme, a top Iranian official said Thursday. As IAEA delegates began a two-day meeting in Vienna, Tehran's ambassador to the body, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, told German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung its co-operation "would be reduced to the minimum we are legally obliged." A vote on a resolution against his country, which would be the first in nearly four years, would "damage the currently constructive atmosphere" and "have long-term consequences," Soltanieh was quoted as saying.

IAEA diplomats say the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- plus Germany have drawn up a draft resolution to put to Vienna gathering. The resolution was prompted by the shock revelation in September that Tehran has been concealing a second uranium enrichment site. But it was not clear from pre-meeting talks whether the text will win the support of the majority on the IAEA's 35-member board, although German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said it enjoyed "broad support." The fact that Russia and China are ready to support such a move is seen as a sign of the growing frustration over Iran's stubborn refusal to come clean about its atomic ambitions.