Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

Iran’s Nuclear Dinner Invitation Did Not Produce Concrete Results- Diplomatic Sources | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
Select Page

Washington, Asharq Al-Awsat- Western diplomats have disclosed that the Iranian dinner invitation from Foreign Minister Manuchehr Mottaki during his presence in New York to the 15 members of the UN Security Council [UNSC] to discuss the Iranian nuclear dossier “did not produce concrete results” and that Tehran acts to use the media whenever the international community gets near to imposing sanctions on it. Informed sources meanwhile reported that the new sanctions plan would be presented to the UNSC soon.

The Iranian invitation was made on the sidelines of the conference reviewing the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty [NPT] and at a time when the UNSC’s five permanent members (the United States, Britain, Russia, France, and China) have started negotiations about a fourth resolution that imposes sanctions on Iran because of its controversial nuclear program.

Diplomatic sources in New York who were present at the dinner disclosed to Asharq Al-Awsat that the dialogue focused on the International Atomic Energy Agency’s [IAEA] offer to Iran to enrich Iranian uranium outside the country and return it highly enriched to Tehran but the dialogue did not produce concrete results. The 15 countries’ representatives briefed their capitals yesterday about the talks during the dinner which Mottaki hosted at the premises of the Iranian mission to the UN to discuss the next steps. But two different sources informed Asharq Al-Awsat that the focus on the offer to enrich uranium does not deal with the major pending problem, namely, Iran’s compliance with the UNSC resolutions and the international community’s demand for it to freeze the enrichment of uranium until the peaceful nature of the Iranian nuclear program has been confirmed.

It is recalled that IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano reiterated this week the agency’s demand from Iran to answer several queries about its nuclear program and stressed that the IAEA could not confirm the nature of the Iranian nuclear program.

A diplomatic source said the “representatives of the 15 countries told Mottaki about our concerns. Iran knows what the international community is expecting from it, namely, concrete steps to comply with the NPT pledges.” But Mottaki replied to these fears by saying his country accepts the international offer to enrich uranium abroad but with amendments to the proposal, which the major countries had previously rejected.