IAEA text hits Iran nuke secrecy
From CNN State Department Producer Elise Labott
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States and its European allies have reached agreement on a draft resolution for the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog that criticizes Iran's secrecy on its nuclear program, a senior administration official has told CNN.
But the resolution for the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) Board of Governors also praises Tehran for its cooperation with the watchdog, the official said Tuesday.
The United States has been negotiating with Britain, France and Germany and other European countries on the text, but now needs to garner the support of the rest of the international community, the official said.
The text will now be sent to capitals for comments and possible revisions.
The text, according to the official, "deplores" that Iran failed to disclose sensitive weapons technologies discovered by the IAEA and "notes with the most serious concern" that Iran's past declarations on its nuclear program "did not amount to the correct, complete and final picture of Iran's past and present nuclear program."
The draft calls on Iran to meet its obligations and comply with the IAEA, but delays further action by the IAEA until June, the official said.
The IAEA claims Iran produced and experimented with polonium, a radioactive element that can be used in the chain reaction that produces a nuclear explosion.
It also charges that Iran failed to declare designs for a sophisticated P2 advanced centrifuge that can be used to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons.
On Monday IAEA Director General Mohammed ElBaradei criticized Iran for failing to disclose the technology and called Iran and Libya, who recently declared its nuclear program, in violation of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
But the text also "welcomes" Iran's signature of an additional protocol allowing more intrusive inspections by the IAEA.
While the text says that Iran is "actively cooperating," it calls on Tehran to "intensify its cooperation."
It also censures Iran for continuing to hide its weapons program from the international community, the U.S. State Department said Tuesday.
"We think it's clear that Iran has not made any strategic decision to abandon a nuclear weapons effort," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said.
He pointed to a "pattern of Iranian behavior" that shows "grudging, partial Iranian cooperation only when confronted by the International Atomic Energy Agency with compelling evidence of an undeclared program."
"That pattern is continuing," he said. "We believe the board should adopt a strong resolution on Iran that reflects the concerns of the board and of the international community.
"We're looking for the board to state clearly that Iran has not yet addressed fully the long-standing concerns about its nuclear activities."
Britain, France, and Germany have been trying to get Iran to cooperate with the IAEA and make good on a recent pledge to fully suspend all uranium enrichment."
