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IAEA Says Hard to Tell if Iran Told All
Only hard for the IAEA:A report by the U.N. nuclear watchdog says uranium contamination finds make it difficult to determine if Iran disclosed the full extent of its nuclear program last year, a diplomat told Reuters Tuesday. The report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said a combination of highly-enriched and low-enriched uranium had been found at two sites in Iran and that this had not yet been fully explained. "Until this matter is satisfactorily resolved, it will be very difficult for the agency to confirm that there has not been any undeclared nuclear material or activities," the diplomat, who follows the IAEA closely, quoted the report as saying. IAEA is desperately trying to find a way out, for Iran that is. Iran has explained previous finds of highly-enriched uranium by saying imported centrifuge parts were contaminated. But the report said this did not explain why there had been finds of both highly- and low-enriched uranium, the diplomat said. Under international pressure, Iran last October gave the IAEA what Tehran called a full declaration of all its nuclear activities. The United States says Tehranâs nuclear program is a front for building nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear program is aimed solely at the production of electricity. Got to plan ahead for when that oil runs out in 100 years. The diplomat said he had not seen any report of new contamination finds in this report. "If it was all imported from one place, why are there different types of contamination at Kalaye and Natanz?" said the diplomat. Interesting, isnât it? The report also said Iranâs nuclear disclosure last October did not include designs for advanced P2 centrifuges because of time pressures. The agency said this was "difficult to comprehend," the diplomat said. Well, they were rushed, you see. If we had given them a few more years, they would have had time to produce a full and complete report. The report also said Iran had produced polonium, a substance that could be used to initiate a chain reaction for a nuclear explosion. "The issue of the purpose of Iranâs activities related to the production and intended use of Po-210 (polonium) remains a concern in the absence of information to support Iranâs statements in this regard." Posted by: Steve 2004-02-24 |
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