VIENNA, Austria - Delegates to a 35-nation meeting of the International
Atomic Energy Agency on Thursday approved the suspension of nearly two dozen
nuclear technical aid programs to Iran as part of UN sanctions imposed because
its nuclear defiance.
A general view shows the Bushehr nuclear power plant in Iran,
June 2006. The European Union urged Iran on Wednesday to take up an offer
to suspend its nuclear enrichment in return for suspending sanctions on
Tehran. [AFP]
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The decision to deprive Iran of 23
projects was taken by consensus and was expected. Even nations on the IAEA board
normally supportive of Iran backed it because it was recommended by agency chief
Mohamed ElBaradei, on authority of the UN Security Council.
"I have not heard anyone express dissatisfaction" with ElBaradei's
recommendations, said Ramzy Ezzeidin Ramzy, Egypt's chief IAEA representative,
before the decision, reflecting the meeting's widespread unanimity on the issue.
The suspensions fell under the provision of UN Security Council sanctions
agreed on Dec. 23 to punish Iran for defying a council demand that it freeze its
uranium enrichment activities. The five permanent council members now are
consulting on additional sanctions after Tehran ignored a new ultimatum to stop
enrichment last month.
Council diplomats in New York said these could include a travel ban, an
expanded list of people and companies subject to an asset freeze, an arms
embargo and trade restrictions, but they cautioned that differences remained.
While Iran says it has the legal right to develop an enrichment program to
generate nuclear power, the Security Council has called on it to end such
activities because of fears it could misuse the process to produce the fissile
material for warheads.