The International Atomic Energy Agency chief said on Monday he hoped a deal to defuse a standoff over Iran's nuclear ambitions could be reached soon, as the IAEA board met in a possible prelude to UN Security Council action. Mohammad Baradei cited a surge of diplomacy involving Russia and EU powers in which Iran has offered not to pursue industrial-scale uranium enrichment for up to two years. But its insistence on doing sensitive research is a key sticking point. "I am still very much hopeful that in the next week or so an agreement could be reached," Baradei said, while acknowledging that Russia's proposal to enrich uranium for Iran had snagged on Tehran's determination to purify nuclear fuel itself. Javad Vaeedi, deputy secretary of Iran's national security council, highlighted that obstacle when he told Reuters that enrichment "research and development" in Iran was irreversible. Iran seems to be counting on divisions in the Security Council over whether to resort to sanctions mooted by the United States. Wielding vetoes in the council, Russia and China could block sanctions that would disrupt their trade ties to Iran.
