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U.S., U.K. Reach Deal With IAEA on Libya
The United States and the U.N. atomic agency agreed Monday to work together in examining, cataloging and scrapping Libyaâs nuclear weapons program, ending weeks of squabbling over who has the authority to do so. The deal was reached by International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei, senior British arms expert William Ehrman, and U.S. Undersecretary of State John Bolton, a critic of the IAEA policy on Libya and Iran.Looks like we got more than we gave. Following the meeting at the offices of the U.S. mission to the IAEA, ElBaradei said the agreement gave his agency the role of establishing the scope and content of Libyaâs nuclear program. Once IAEA verification was complete, U.S. and British experts would remove suspect materials from the North African country, he said. Diplomats familiar with the agency said the IAEA also was claiming the right to verify that all contentious equipment and material had been removed or rendered unusable. With us looking over their shoulders. Differing characterizations of the state of Libyaâs program had fueled the dispute: The IAEA has said Libya was nowhere near producing a weapon, while Washington and London contended it was further along than the agency realizes. Has the IAEA ever been ahead of anyone in an assessment of a nationâs ability to make nukes? Meanwhile, British and American weapons experts have returned to Libya, a senior U.S. official told The New York Times. But both sides were eager Monday to put the disputes behind them. "It was a very productive meeting Could you pass me four Advils? "We have agreement on what needs to be done," he said. "Clearly, the agencyâs role is very clear - that we need to do the verification. A good part of the program needs to be eliminated, it needs to be moved out, and we clearly need the British and American support with logistics." And with intel, leadership and truth-telling. Diplomats said both sides had made concessions, but suggested some differences remained. "The Americans are not interested in having their hands tied," said one, speaking on condition of anonymity. He said that while the agency would be given the mandate to verify the state of Libyaâs weapons activities, U.S. and British teams would essentially also be conducting their own investigations. Yep, weâre not real big on having our hands tied. Posted by: Steve White 2004-01-20 |
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