Brussels, 16/01/2006 (Agence Europe) - The political directors of the EU-3 (Germany, France and UK) Foreign Ministries gathered in London on Monday to meet diplomats from three other permanent United Nations Security Council members (United States, Russia and China) to seek to develop a common position before an exceptional meeting of the governing body of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is held. The IAEA meeting was requested by Europeans last week and is to decide whether, or not, to refer the Iranian nuclear dossier to the Security Council (see EUROPE 9108 and 9109). As far as the EU3 is concerned, Monday's meeting will aim to reach agreement ahead of the specila meeting (expected to be held in Vienna in February) of the IAEA. Although Europeans and Americans are determined to take the matter before the Security Council, Russians and Chinese, which can use their veto against possible sanctions against Teheran, strike a more cautious stance.
Last Saturday, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reasserted the right of his country to carry out its own nuclear experiments and warned that he would not deprive Iran country of this right. Giving his assurance that Iran did not intend to make a nuclear bomb, Mr Ahmadinejad spoke of possible economic retaliation and warned against a surge in oil prices. On Friday, Teheran threatened to stop all voluntary cooperation with the IAEA if the dossier were transferred to New York. Also, in an interview with Newsweek, IAEA Director Mohamed ElBaradei said that, after three years of intensive work on the Iranian nuclear programme, he was still not able to judge whether Iran's nuclear programme was for peaceful purposes or not. Furthermore, Mr ElBaradei does not rule out the fact that Teheran might have a nuclear arms programme unknown to the IAEA