UK presses Iran on nuclear issue
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Straw is on his fourth trip to Iran.
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LONDON, England -- British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw is urging Iran to open up its controversial nuclear program to international inspectors "as soon as possible."
Straw arrived the Iranian capital Sunday with a warning for the country's leaders that failure to co-operate on the nuclear issue could damage its chances of a lucrative trade deal with the European Union.
His call comes amid growing international concern that Iran's civil power program is a cover for the development of nuclear weapons.
Earlier this month the International Atomic Energy Agency issued a report calling on Iran to sign up to a new protocol to the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
The IAEA wants Tehran to stop the enrichment of uranium -- a key step in building an atomic bomb -- and allow inspectors full access to its nuclear instalations.
"We want to see them do it as soon as possible," Straw told reporters traveling with him.
"The sooner they do this the greater the reassurance that can be provided to the IAEA and the United Nations."
Straw, who was meeting Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, linked progress on the issue to trade talks with the EU due to start in September.
"The EU has made clear that co-operation on one area -- for example trade -- has to go in step with co-operation on human rights and international obligations under the NPT," he said.
Straw said that he would also be raising the issue of Iran's influence in neighboring Iraq, over which he acknowledged there had been "some problems."
