Vienna, 09/01/2006 (Agence Europe) - The announcement of Iran's intention to resume nuclear research has created a “very worrying situation” and could jeopardise the meeting between the EU-3 (Germany, France and the United Kingdom) and Iranians to be held on 18 January in Vienna, Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik said on 8 January when speaking to a group of European journalists in Vienna. “We shall consult inside the EU to see what this means with regard to the envisaged discussions between the EU-3 and Iran foreseen for 18 January”, she said. On 9 January, during his press conference with President Barroso, Chancellor Schüssel also expressed deep concern, while hoping that “reason will prevail” in Teheran rather than “confrontation”. The possibility of sanctions does exist but always as a last resort, he told the press. Answering questions put to him on how appropriate it is for the three large Member States to negotiate on this issue on behalf of the EU, Wolfgang Schüssel said in response that EU foreign policy is above all intergovernmental. He found it “very positive” that these three countries should seek to convince Iran to cooperate. Also, the seat of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is in Vienna and, he said, they have had frequent contact with its director, who is very much in favour of the work of the EU-3.
IAEA considers Teheran's explanation insufficient. - EU deplores Iran's unilateral decision
The spokesman for the Iranian government, Gholamhossein Elham¸ confirmed on Monday that there was “nothing illegal” about the resumption of these sensitive activities as it comes under the control of representatives of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Since uranium conversion activities resumed on 8 August last, this is the second time in six months that Iran has removed the seals imposed by IAEA inspectors on sensitive nuclear activity centres. Despite Iranian assurance that atomic research activity would be resumed under the “strict control” of the IAEA, the UN agency considers as “insufficient” the two explanatory letters forwarded to it by Teheran. Concerned by such a decision, the Union and the IAEA have, in recent days, reiterated their calls on Teheran not to carry this out, in order to preserve the patience of the international community and avoid transferral of the dossier to the UN Security Council.
On 7 January, the Austrian EU Council Presidency stressed in a declaration on behalf of the EU that this measure would “violate both the letter and the spirit of the 8 previous resolutions” of the IAEA that call on Iran to suspend all enrichment-related activity. The Union deplores the fact that Iran has “chosen to announce this unilateral move at a moment when international confidence in the peaceful nature of its programme is far from restored. It finds it surprising and unreasonable that Iran proposes to do this at a moment when (…) Britain, France and Germany with the EU were exploring with Iran the possibility of a return to negotiations”.
Such a decision cannot fail to have an impact, the German foreign minister, Frank Walter Steinmeier, said on Monday morning, deploring the fact that Russian-Iranian discussions that unfolded during the weekend in Teheran on Moscow's proposal to transfer part of Iran's uranium enrichment activity to Russian territory were “visibly not successful”. Iranians and Russians are to meet again in Moscow on 16 February in order to reach a “final conclusion”, one Iranian official said.