Iran Nuclear NewsU.S., EU said arguing over Iran nuclear reactor

U.S., EU said arguing over Iran nuclear reactor

-

Reuters: A Russian-built nuclear reactor has become a stumbling block to an agreement on a proposed package of U.N. sanctions on Iran, with the United States arguing that Moscow should be forced to halt work on the project, American officials and diplomats said on Monday.
By Carol Giacomo, Diplomatic Correspondent

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A Russian-built nuclear reactor has become a stumbling block to an agreement on a proposed package of U.N. sanctions on Iran, with the United States arguing that Moscow should be forced to halt work on the project, American officials and diplomats said on Monday.

Last week, U.S. and European officials said that to dissuade Russia from blocking U.N. action, Moscow would be permitted to continue work on the reactor at Bushehr in southwestern Iran even if the U.N. Security Council imposed sanctions on Tehran for its nuclear program.

But diplomats and U.S. officials said on Monday that some Europeans now agree the draft sanctions resolution should ban Russia from fueling the reactor.

Washington wants to halt all work on the project, worth about $800 million to Russia. “We are pushing for no exemptions,” a U.S. official said.

Some Europeans are concerned Russia will see the dispute as a sign of bad faith and seek to challenge other key aspects of the major powers’ common position on Iran.

Maintaining unity among the five veto-wielding Security Council members — the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China — plus Germany has been central to efforts to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

Agreement on a resolution is still eluding the major powers a week after Britain, France and Germany began working on a draft.

One European diplomat said if disputed issues are not soon resolved, the Europeans may circulate their draft to Russia and China without U.S. support.

CARGO INSPECTIONS?

The United States is also said to be pushing for inspections of cargo going in and out of Iran, as was done recently with U.N. sanctions imposed on North Korea.

But Europeans say Iran does not merit this treatment because its nuclear development is not nearly as advanced as that in North Korea, which recently tested a nuclear device.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said there was “widespread agreement, although not total agreement,” among the United States and its allies on a proposed resolution.

He told a news briefing he did not expect a completed resolution this week, but the issue would likely dominate the Security Council for the next several weeks.

France’s U.N. Ambassador had hoped for a text by the end of last week, while his British counterpart predicted the council would get the draft early this week.

The resolution would impose sanctions, including bans on nuclear and missile cooperation, after Iran ignored a Security Council demand to suspend uranium enrichment by Aug. 31.

Iran insists it only seeks to produce nuclear energy but Washington and its allies say Tehran is developing weapons.

A European diplomat said until recently there was a common U.S.-European understanding that Bushehr should be exempted for the “political expediency” of guaranteeing Russian support for the sanctions resolution.

The strategy was to start off with limited sanctions, then seek tougher penalties if Iran continued to refuse to suspend enrichment.

But U.S. officials, fearing the council may only act on one sanctions resolution, seem determined to make the draft now under consideration “as tough as possible,” the diplomat said.

Meanwhile, diplomats in Vienna — headquarters of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency — said Iran had expanded its nuclear program by initiating a second batch of centrifuges at a pilot nuclear fuel plant.

(Additional reporting by Randall Mikkelsen in Washington and Evelyn Leopold at the United Nations)

Latest news

 Statistics show that New Year accidents’ deaths in Iran reached 585

Ahmad Shirani, the head of the Information and Traffic Control Center of the Iranian regime’s police, announced that the...

Land Subsidence in Critical Conditions in Isfahan

Mehdi Toghyani, a member of the Iranian regime’s Majlis (parliament), pointed to the occurrence of land subsidence in various...

Iran’s Actual Inflation Rate Higher Than Official Stats

The state-run Donya-e-eqtesad newspaper, in a report analyzing the "general sentiment" regarding inflation in 2023, has stated that households...

Iranian Workers’ Monthly $136 Wages Can’t Cover $500 Expenses

The lives of a significant portion of the Iranian population are marked by uncertainty, largely because the Iranian economy...

Iranian Nurses Earn Twice Their Wages in Ride-Hailing Services

Reza Aryanpour, a member of the regime’s Majlis (parliament) Health and Treatment Commission, highlighted the growing trend of nurses...

Iran: Unprecedented Record of 152 Million Liters of Gasoline Consumption Per Day

On March 19, Iran set a new historical record in gasoline consumption with 152 million liters consumed in one...

Must read

German FM says war not an option in Iran

AFP: German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer expressed "great concern"...

You might also likeRELATED
Recommended to you