Posted on 11/17/2004 6:43:12 AM PST by Ginifer
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - President Mohammad Khatami called a nuclear deal reached with European country a "great victory" but said Wednesday that Tehran won't respect its commitment if Europeans fail to support his country at a meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency next week.
"Europeans, under the agreement, have recognized that Iran can exercise its rights (in seeking nuclear technology). This is a great victory," Khatami told reporters.
The agreement, detailed Monday by Iran and in a report by the IAEA, commits Iran to suspend all uranium enrichment and related activities within a week in return for European guarantees that Iran has the right to pursue a peaceful nuclear program.
Khatami said Iran won't respect its commitments under the deal if Europeans fail to meet their obligations. The first test, he said, "is the IAEA board meeting."
Khatami called "positive" a report by Mohamed El-Baradei, the IAEA chief, saying the report indicated that there was no need for any extraordinary investigation of Iran's nuclear activities and that Iran's dossier needs to be normalized at the agency.
"Take the first step correctly and use Iran's confidence and goodwill. Show goodwill. If the IEAE board of governors adopts a correct decision, it will be a step in the direction that will give us more hope that our rights will be exercised," Khatami said.
"If we see that they don't keep their promise, it's natural that we won't fulfil our promise," he warned.
The deal has prompted strong criticism by hardliners who have accused the government of ignoring Iran's rights. The deal also prompted conservative legislators to summon Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Hasan Rowhani, to Parliament on Tuesday to question him over the agreement.
Meanwhile, an Iranian opposition group claimed Wednesday that Tehran received blueprints of a nuclear bomb from the same black market network that gave Libya such diagrams and continues to enrich uranium despite last week's deal.
Farid Soleimani, a senior official for the National Council for Resistance in Iran, said the diagram was provided by Abdul Qadeer Khan, the Pakistani head of the nuclear network linked to clandestine programs both in Iran and in Libya, which has since scrapped such activities.
"He gave them the same weapons design he gave the Libyans as well as more in terms of weapons design," Soleimani told reporters in Vienna, Austria. He said the diagram and related material on how to make nuclear weapons was handed to the Iranians between 1994 and 1996.
The IAEA, which is based in Vienna, had no immediate comment.
They want to get that new reactor fueled before Israel blows it up. They're betting that once it's on line they won't attack it for fear of spreading radiation. Once they've got that, they'll have no more use for these "agreements".
What are we and/or Israel waiting for? These psychopathic mullahs will never stop on the road to producing nuclear capable materials. We are idly standing by while they engineer our doom. Does anyone doubt that they will sell nukes (or give them) to terrorists for use against us?
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