Desperate for a deal: West dropping demand that Iran make full disclosure of its nuclear weapons program
Officially, the United States and its Western allies say it is vital that Iran fully addresses the concerns of the U.N. nuclear agency if it wants a diplomatic settlement that would end sanctions severely hurting its oil-based economy.
"Iran’s previous activities have to come to light and be explained," a senior Western diplomat said.
Privately, however, some officials acknowledge that Iran would probably never admit to what they believe it was guilty of: covertly working in the past to develop the means and expertise needed to build a nuclear-armed missile.
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A senior Western official said the six would try to "be creative" in coming up with a formula that would satisfy demands by those who want Iran to come clean about any atomic bomb research and those who say it is unrealistic to expect the country to openly acknowledge it.
The outcome could also affect the standing of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which for years has been trying to investigate what it calls the possible military dimensions (PMD) of Iran's nuclear program.
While the global powers - the United States, France, Germany, Russia, China and Britain - seek to persuade Iran to scale back its uranium enrichment program to lengthen the timeline for any bid to assemble nuclear arms, the IAEA is investigating possible research on designing an actual bomb.
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If an eventual accord does not put strong pressure on Iran to increase cooperation with the IAEA by making it a condition for some sanctions relief, it may hurt its future credibility, according to some diplomats accredited to the agency.
"You don't want to undermine the integrity of the IAEA," one said.
I guess that like his boss, John Kerry has decided that an empty peace prize is better than no peace prize.
The IAEA issued a report in 2011 with intelligence information indicating concerted activities until about a decade ago that could be relevant for developing nuclear bombs, some of which the U.N. agency said may be continuing.
Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Iranian nuclear threat, John Kerry, nuclear weapons, P 5+1
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 10:18 PM
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