Iran threatens to end nuclear treaty with EU
Laptop Battery Friday, 4th March 2005
Iran Focus
Tehran, Mar. 04 - Iran today threatened to end its nuclear agreement with the European Union "big three", saying that it would not be bound to previous commitments, if they continued to call for permanent suspension of uranium enrichment by the Iranian regime.
If the Europeans do not abide by the Iran-EU nuclear agreement and ask for a permanent suspension of uranium enrichment, Iran will not fulfill its commitments, the regime's spokesman Abdollah Ramezanzadeh said in an interview with the state-run Mehr news agency.
Ramezanzadeh said that the EU big three had not officially demanded that Iran to permanently suspend its uranium enrichment program, but were they to make such a demand officially, Iran would have no reason to fulfill its previous commitments.
He said Iran "voluntarily" suspended enrichment activities, but if the International Atomic Energy Agency or the Europeans try to make it an obligation, then Iran will not accept it.
Earlier this week an Iran expert said, "Emboldened by signs that the United States may be about to join the European Union's nuclear negotiations with Iran by offering incentives to Tehran, Iran is hardening its position and making a serious bid to dictate its terms during the nuclear talks with the European "big three", Britain, France, and Germany".
Ali Safavi, President of the Washington-based Near East Policy Research institute, told Iran Focus, "Signs that the Bush administration would be willing to join Europe's failing 'carrot and stick' approach to dealing with Iran's clandestine nuclear weapons program, have now convinced the ruling theocracy that they get away with even more violations of their nuclear obligations without fear of reprisal".
Safavi said that the regime was using the negotiations as a mechanism to buy time to secretly carry out nuclear weapons related activities in accordance with the order handed down by Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who had decreed that the regime must be able to obtain the bomb by the end of the year 2005.
"The EU's appeasement policy has failed on all counts, be it human rights related, on Iran's sponsoring of terror abroad, its meddling in Iraq, or its pursuit of nuclear weapons", Safavi said.
Safavi urged both the EU and the US to blacklist the Iranian regime by referring its nuclear file to the UN Security Council, rather than appeasing it by "offering the regime concessions for agreeing not to break international rules which they are legally bound by under terms of the Non-Proliferation Treaty ".
"The mullahs feel they can now dictate the terms of their nuclear treaty with the West. To stop the threat of nuclear weapons proliferation those dealing with the regime should stop resisting attempts to send Iran's nuclear file to the UN Security Council after today's IAEA Board of Governor's session", he said.
"Our deadline for suspending nuclear work was the EU proposal. We will wait until the first days of August but will restart activities right afterwards, " Khatami told reporters. EU diplomats said the European offer was predicated on Iran agreeing to maintain indefinitely its suspension of uranium enrichment, nuclear fuel reprocessing and related activities. Proliferation Treaty, meant to prevent the spread of atomic weapons while allowing civilian nuclear work, and wants to be allowed to keep at least a pilot enrichment programme.
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