U.S. Slams United Nations Watchdog, Suspects Iran Still Lying

http://wireservice.wired.com/wired/story ^ | Friday, November 21, 2003 | Louis Charbonneau

[freetradenotfree]

VIENNA (Reuters) - The United States accused the U.N. nuclear watchdog on Friday of weakening its credibility by not taking a tougher stand against Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Washington says Iran has a secret program to develop atomic bombs and was enraged when an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report concluded there was "no evidence" of this.

[freetradenotfree]

Get out of the U.N

[freetradenotfree]

Iran fooled UN inspectors with decoy site-exiles


VIENNA, Nov 19 (Reuters) - Iran continues to deceive the U.N. nuclear watchdog and even took the agency's inspectors to a decoy site to prevent them from uncovering an undeclared nuclear workshop, an exiled Iranian opposition group said on Wednesday.

This allegation comes a day before the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) Board of Governors meets to discuss an IAEA report on Iran's 18-year concealment of the full extent of its nuclear programme from the U.N. body.

The United States accuses Iran of secretly developing nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran vehemently denies. Iran says it has opened its nuclear programme completely and has no secrets.

Firouz Mahvi, a member of the foreign relations committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) told a news conference IAEA experts went to inspect an alleged nuclear site in Hashtgerd, near Karaj, but were taken to a similar site.

"Information from within the clerical regime made it clear that they had been taken to a site similar to the site in question and they were not shown the actual site. This is one example of the clerical regime's deceptive tactics," he said.

IAEA officials were not immediately available for comment.

In August 2002, the NCRI sparked the crisis surrounding Iran's nuclear programme by revealing an underground uranium-enrichment plant at Natanz and a heavy-water production facility at Arak both of which Iran later declared to the IAEA.

The NCRI sees itself as a potential replacement for Islamic rule in Iran, but has little popular support inside the country. The U.S. State Department lists the NCRI and its armed wing, the People's Mujahideen, as a terrorist organisation.

Mahvi said Iran was still lying to the U.N. and that its cooperation was a ruse that would eventually be ended.

"They (the Iranian government) want to buy time and cooperate as much as possible to get to the 'point of no return'," Mahvi said, adding that the point of no return was the moment Iran could not be prevented from making an atom bomb.

He said that the NCRI believed this point would be reached in several months to two years. Washington believes it would take Iran until the latter part of this decade.

[m1-lightning]

U.S. Slams United Nations Watchdog, Suspects Iran Still Lying

I make an assumtion that Iran will be next regardless if there is a relative threat to the US or not. I believe if we invade Iran, the terrorists will either get the picture, or will step up the level of extreme violence towards America. I see the latter being more likely. This might just be what it takes to weed out the rest of them.

[browardchad]

What a surprise -- not.

[Rutles4Ever]

The day is coming where nations are going to have to determine if they are sheep or goats. I thought that was going to happen after 9/11, but we've allowed the U.N. just enough relevance to keep them afloat. Eventually, as a matter of survival, that will change. We are in the nascent stages of WW III, I firmly believe, and there is simply no possible way Iran and N. Korea can be allowed to build/retain nuclear weaponry.

[freetradenotfree]

Why go to United Nations ?

[Diogenesis]

SSDD

[observer5]

I can only say --- PREEMPTIVE STRIKE!

What are we concerned that it will be "unpopular"?

[Rutles4Ever]

An excellent question which needs to be answered...

[Indie]

Agreed. If anything even remotely resembling a CBN weapon lights up on our soil, that should be the moment Tehran, Syria, et al are turned to obsidian. We probably won't have proof who did it and our country will be mortally wounded and probably threatened with extermination by Russia/China once weakened by an attack...so IMO, take them all out and let God sort it out.

[cars for sale]

it has and I am constantly amazed how some stretch
or add to or take from or tell me "what he meant"
when the president speaks. To the Un at the UN Dubya told
all the UN was a dead beat debating society and We (the USA) does not need permission to defend herself.

Syria is next as Iran's demise will first start from
the inside .

[jempet]

Why is Britain taking such a soft aproach to Iran? We know the french have won a bid to develope Iran's untouched oil fields, and have helped them build their nuclear facilities, but what does Britain have to gain from thier stance? Doesn't make sense. Iran will not comply with the Un, we have seen it all before. Check out this website for up to date information on the Middle East. It has proven 100% accurate since before the Iraq war, and I visit it everyday.

http://debka.com/index.php

[Doctor DNA]

And now that the Saudis believe that the Iranians are building nuclear weapons, they will have to have nukes too. The Saudis are now shopping for nuclear proof, armoured vehicles from Germany. Germany is one of the nations that is protecting Iran from the Americans. (coincidence?)

The Saudis say that if Iran gets nukes they must protect themselves with nukes too, although they werent concerned about Israel's own nukes to do this!

Can't trust those Iranian Mad Mullahs!

RoP,MA!

[tubavil]

The Director General of the IAEA is named muhamed!

Which a like send sending someone named satan to Hell looking for fire code violations.

A muslim's first duty is always to other muslims!

[thinktwice]

Washington says Iran has a secret program to develop atomic bombs and was enraged when

Some bad writing there ... My first thought was that Iran was enraged.

[DoctorZIn]

Join Us At Today's Iranian Alert Thread – The Most Underreported Story Of The Year!

Click on the link above!

"If you want on or off this Iran ping list, Freepmail DoctorZin”

[freetradenotfree]

France, Russia, Germany push for greater United Nations role in Iraq's return to self-government

EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press Writer Friday, November 21, 2003




(11-21) 12:51 PST UNITED NATIONS (AP) --

France, Russia and Germany urged the United States and Britain on Friday to ensure that Iraq's neighbors and the United Nations have a role at every stage of the move toward self-government in Iraq.

The three countries -- which opposed the U.S.-led war in Iraq -- also supported the idea of a conference that would bring together a broad spectrum of Iraqi groups, along with Iraq's neighbors and international representatives to support the return of sovereignty.

Russia said the conference could be held outside Iraq because of security concerns and proposed that it set specific steps to implement the political timetable agreed to by the U.S.-led coalition and the Iraqi Governing Council on Nov. 15.

U.S. Ambassador John Negroponte and British Ambassador Emyr Jones Parry briefed the U.N. Security Council on the agreement, the continuing attacks in Iraq, and the coalition's efforts to give Iraqis more responsibility for running the country.

The timetable calls for the coalition to hand over power to an Iraqi transitional government by June 30, though U.S. troops would stay beyond that date.

The transitional government would organize elections by March 15, 2005, for a constitutional convention to draft a constitution that would be ratified in a referendum. A new Iraqi government would be elected by Dec. 31, 2005.

France's U.N. Ambassador Jean-Marc de La Sabliere said "it is a matter of urgency to rebuild consensus in Iraq, at the regional level, and within the international community."

First, all Iraqis who oppose or who have given up violence must be involved in the political process, the French ambassador said.

"It is also essential to involve and to make accountable all of the states of the region, without exception, to enable Iraq to become part of the region once again," de La Sabliere said. "It is essential that the United Nations be allowed, with full independence, to lend its legitimacy and its support to support the transition in Iraq at each of the stages."

Germany's U.N. Ambassador, Gunter Pleuger, Russian U.N. Ambassador Sergey Lavrov, and China's U.N. Ambassador, Wang Guangya, echoed the importance of a strong U.N. role.

"We need to involve in the process of settlement as many Iraqis as possible, regional countries, and give the U.N. a real chance," Lavrov said.

[freetradenotfree]

U.N. names three nations as likely suppliers to Iran
Russia, China, Pakistan among suspected sellers of nuclear equipment

---

Associated Press
Originally published November 21, 2003



VIENNA, Austria - The United Nations' atomic energy agency has identified China, Pakistan and Russia as among the probable suppliers of equipment Iran used to conduct suspected nuclear weapons programs, diplomats said yesterday.
The diplomats spoke to the Associated Press as the International Atomic Energy Agency weighed how harshly to censure Tehran for two decades of covert nuclear activities Iran says were aimed at peaceful purposes.











The IAEA's 35-nation board is debating the wording of a resolution that would satisfy both U.S. calls for strong condemnation of Iran's past cover-ups and European desires to keep Iran cooperating by focusing on its recent openness.

Mohamed ElBaradei, the IAEA director-general, said agency delegates were discussing a "quite strong" resolution. The talks, which broke off yesterday after less than two hours, are to continue today.

While Iran has acknowledged nearly two decades of concealment, it has recently begun cooperating with the agency in response to international pressure. To that end, it has suspended uranium enrichment - an activity that has raised U.S. suspicions of a nuclear weapons agenda.

Iran says it enriched uranium only to produce power. While admitting that some of its enrichment equipment had traces of weapons-grade highly enriched uranium, it insists those traces were inadvertently imported on material it purchased abroad.

But Tehran says it cannot identify the countries of origin because it bought the centrifuges and laser enrichment equipment through third parties.

The Vienna-based IAEA must know where the equipment came from if it is to ascertain whether Iran is telling the truth about the source of trace uranium.

The diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, declined to say how the agency established the probable origin of the equipment.

Pakistan, suspected from the start, has repeatedly denied any involvement.

Russia likewise denied that it was a willing participant in providing enrichment technology to Iran for the purpose of a nuclear weapons program.

Nikolai Shingaryov, chief spokesman for the Nuclear Power Ministry, said yesterday that Russia signed a contract with Iran in the mid-1990s to deliver equipment that could be used for laser enrichment of uranium.

Russia canceled the contract several years later in response to U.S. pressure, and the equipment, still in the experimental phase, "never reached Iran in full," he said.

A senior diplomat said yesterday's meeting was adjourned on Iran's request but that European nations and the United States were taking advantage of the break to bridge their rift on a resolution censuring Iran's past transgression while recognizing its new openness.

Reflecting the seriousness of the divide, President Bush was expected to take up the issue with British Prime Minister Tony Blair as the president visits London this week.

A senior diplomat said the Europeans were "now talking breaches of Iran's obligations to comply with safeguards agreements" that constitute part of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

Such language would be more acceptable to the "Gang of Four" - Australia, Canada, Japan and the United States - who had held out for stronger wording, said the diplomat.

U.S. State Department spokesman Adam Ereli told reporters that Washington sought "firm action" from the board.

"We expect the board ... to find that Iran has been in noncompliance with its safeguards agreement and to report that noncompliance to the Security Council," he said.

In reality, diplomats at the Vienna meeting said the United States would likely settle for less - toughened language in a revised draft but no direct mention of the Security Council, which carries with it the implicit threat of sanctions.

Quoting from the still-evolving draft, another diplomat said the text welcomed Iran's recent cooperation and said the board "is operating on the assumption" that Tehran is giving the agency a "correct, full and final picture of Iran's past and present nuclear program."

But it also stated that the board "deplores past breaches of ... [Iran's] obligations" to comply with IAEA safeguards meant to prevent nonproliferation and "calls upon Iran to adhere strictly to the terms of its safeguard agreement in both letter and spirit."

Under the stronger draft, the board reserves the right to immediately call an emergency session should any evidence surface that Iran was guilty of "significant failures."

[Brian Allen]

The manifestations of evil that are Iran's murderous mullahs are about to discover the unintended consequences and costs of their malevolently and delusionally-hesperophobic nuclear ambitions.

Think June 7 1981.

Think Operation Shock and Awe.

Think Operation Iron Hammer.

And then think North Korea .........

[FRee Trade, by the way, IS FRee. It's interference with it that costs. In wealth and profits at every level -- but especially in the higher prices paid by every one of US -- and in the hundreds of thousands of American jobs never created because of or lost to the trade Luddites' tarrif/taxes]

Bump/Ping