Iran wants nuclear fuel guarantees

Published: 23/11/2009 at 12:03 AM
Online news: Breakingnews

Iran's envoy to the UN atomic watchdog said on Sunday that Tehran wants a guaranteed supply of fuel for a research reactor as a military chief warned that any attack on its nuclear sites would be crushed.

Iranian technicians remove a container of radioactive uranium at the Isfahan Uranium Conversion Facilities in 2005. Iran's envoy to the UN atomic watchdog said that Tehran wants a guaranteed supply of fuel for a research reactor as a military chief warned that any attack on its nuclear sites would be crushed.

Ali Asghar Soltanieh, envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), reiterated that Tehran is ready for further talks on supplying fuel for the internationally supervised reactor in the capital.

"The main issue is how to get a guarantee for the timely supply of fuel which Iran needs," Soltanieh was quoted as saying by ISNA news agency.

"We are ready to have negotiations with a positive approach, but because of lack of confidence with the West, we need to have those guarantees."

He spoke days after the Islamic republic rejected a deal brokered by the IAEA which proposed that Tehran send most of its stock of low-enriched uranium (LEU) to Russia and France for conversion into fuel for the research reactor.

However, Iran said it was ready for a simultaneous exchange inside the country of its LEU for nuclear fuel supplied by the West.

Western powers strongly back the IAEA-drafted deal as they fear Iran could further enrich its LEU for use in making atomic weapons, a charge Tehran denies.

A senior US official on Sunday urged Iran to "engage" with the West over its nuclear programme.

"We would prefer that the Iranian regime follow through on the opportunity to engage," Ellen Tauscher, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security at the State Department, told the Halifax International Security Forum in Canada.

"If persuasion doesn't work, pressure is going to have to be the next line of action," she warned in a reference to possible further sanctions.

But, she added, "I don't believe (military action against Iran) is on the table now."

The United States and Israel have never ruled out military action to prevent Iran acquiring a bomb. Israel is widely suspected to be the Middle East's sole -- albeit undeclared -- nuclear-armed power.

A commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards said on Sunday that its air defences would annihilate Israeli warplanes if they attacked.

"Their F-15 and F-16 fighters will be trapped by our air defence forces and will be annihilated," Guards' air wing chief Amir Ali Hajizadeh told Fars news agency as war games aimed at honing a response to any assault on Iran's nuclear sites began.

"Even if their planes escape and land at the bases from which they took off, their bases will be struck by our destructive surface-to-surface missiles."

An aide to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Saturday that if Iran was attacked, it would retaliate against Tel Aviv in Israel.

Enrichment lies at the heart of the Iran nuclear controversy. Enriched uranium can be used to power reactors, but in purer form it can also be used in the fissile core of an atomic weapon.

Soltanieh said that under IAEA rules, member states can enrich uranium to any level.

"There is no limit to enrichment for members of the IAEA. There is no ceiling," he said. "The member countries are however required to declare to the agency their enrichment levels and the agency has to verify it."

He clarified that Iran's main enrichment plant in the central city of Natanz was enriching uranium to five percent purity.

Iran is building a second enrichment plant near the holy city of Qom. Its disclosure in September triggered outrage in the West, prompting world powers to threaten fresh sanctions if Tehran did not come clean on its atomic project.

Tehran is already under three sets of UN sanctions for enriching uranium at Natanz.

About the author

: Writer: AFP News agency; Position: Agence France-Presse

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Big Gary

Discussion 5 : 23/11/2009 at 03:41 PM5
Pointman #2 I agree 100%.
anonnymouse

Discussion 4 : 23/11/2009 at 12:24 PM4
The Iranian Government need a geography lesson. China and Russia and not deemed western countries but they are supporting the sanctions and Russia is taking an active role in the negotiations. But of course admitting this, doesnt suit Iran's arguement which is hell bent on west bashing.

Arabs have been making claims for years about how they will defeat the Israeli military. They have all failed to date and the Iranian military fool nobody about their claims of taking out the Israeli air force. The bluster is of course for domestic consumption to take attention away from other matters.
Pointman #2

Discussion 3 : 23/11/2009 at 12:07 PM3
I believe, a nuclear war is bound to happen. I don't worry too much about Iran, or anything I have no control over. Mankind is doomed. The Andromeda Galaxy is on a collision course with the Milky Way Galaxy. The sun is half burned out and will eventually, give you the most fatal sun-burn ever, before squeezing you into something the size of a grain of sand. There's a chance the super-colider CERN will create a black-hole and suck the entire world up like a vacumn cleaner. There's a black-hole at the center of our Milky Way Galaxy feeding on stars around it. There's a huge black-hole millions of times bigger than our sun, lurking out there in space eating up stars like a fat man at McDonalds. My advice, forget about Iran, go skydiving, enjoy the fall, or go to the beach, sit in the sun and drink some good cold beer.
A.B.C.

Discussion 2 : 23/11/2009 at 09:52 AM2
Iran is worry for his uranium supply.
But countries that produce electricity from nuclear power plants are also concerning about the world uranium supply future.
Even though the world reserve could be “estimated” at 5.5 million tons,
-The uranium mine production was about 43,000 u tons only in 2008,
-For a total nuclear power plants consumption of 65,000 u tons (supplying 436 active reactors in the world).
-The difference of about 22,000 u tons came from secondary sources such as civilian and military stockpiles, reprocessed fuel and re-enriched uranium.
What it means?
Not enough capacity of uranium extraction from world mines??????
Many new nuclear power plants are under construction, and the future number could reach 800 to 900 active reactors!
What will happen next?
Penury... commodities prices will surge...? ...?
sombatratmy

Discussion 1 : 23/11/2009 at 08:08 AM1
Nuclear and military power stop other nuclear power from bully. There were reason why the U.S, and Western countrise didn't want the Israel to signed the NPNT. You think the U.S. bully other countrise that have nuclear bombs, Nop!
its always negotiation. For example, Pakistan who's the world most terrorist country (with nuclear bombs), yet Iraqi was bullied and accused of having WMD (supplied by both the U.S. and Israel to attacted the Iranian)and subsequented was attacted by, but at the end proved with No WMD Acquired. Think twice Asian.

Big Gary

Discussion 5 : 23/11/2009 at 03:41 PM5

Pointman #2 I agree 100%.

anonnymouse

Discussion 4 : 23/11/2009 at 12:24 PM4

The Iranian Government need a geography lesson. China and Russia and not deemed western countries but they are supporting the sanctions and Russia is taking an active role in the negotiations. But of course admitting this, doesnt suit Iran's arguement which is hell bent on west bashing.

Arabs have been making claims for years about how they will defeat the Israeli military. They have all failed to date and the Iranian military fool nobody about their claims of taking out the Israeli air force. The bluster is of course for domestic consumption to take attention away from other matters.

Pointman #2

Discussion 3 : 23/11/2009 at 12:07 PM3

I believe, a nuclear war is bound to happen. I don't worry too much about Iran, or anything I have no control over. Mankind is doomed. The Andromeda Galaxy is on a collision course with the Milky Way Galaxy. The sun is half burned out and will eventually, give you the most fatal sun-burn ever, before squeezing you into something the size of a grain of sand. There's a chance the super-colider CERN will create a black-hole and suck the entire world up like a vacumn cleaner. There's a black-hole at the center of our Milky Way Galaxy feeding on stars around it. There's a huge black-hole millions of times bigger than our sun, lurking out there in space eating up stars like a fat man at McDonalds. My advice, forget about Iran, go skydiving, enjoy the fall, or go to the beach, sit in the sun and drink some good cold beer.

A.B.C.

Discussion 2 : 23/11/2009 at 09:52 AM2

Iran is worry for his uranium supply.
But countries that produce electricity from nuclear power plants are also concerning about the world uranium supply future.
Even though the world reserve could be “estimated” at 5.5 million tons,
-The uranium mine production was about 43,000 u tons only in 2008,
-For a total nuclear power plants consumption of 65,000 u tons (supplying 436 active reactors in the world).
-The difference of about 22,000 u tons came from secondary sources such as civilian and military stockpiles, reprocessed fuel and re-enriched uranium.
What it means?
Not enough capacity of uranium extraction from world mines??????
Many new nuclear power plants are under construction, and the future number could reach 800 to 900 active reactors!
What will happen next?
Penury... commodities prices will surge...? ...?

sombatratmy

Discussion 1 : 23/11/2009 at 08:08 AM1

Nuclear and military power stop other nuclear power from bully. There were reason why the U.S, and Western countrise didn't want the Israel to signed the NPNT. You think the U.S. bully other countrise that have nuclear bombs, Nop!
its always negotiation. For example, Pakistan who's the world most terrorist country (with nuclear bombs), yet Iraqi was bullied and accused of having WMD (supplied by both the U.S. and Israel to attacted the Iranian)and subsequented was attacted by, but at the end proved with No WMD Acquired. Think twice Asian.

Iran wants nuclear fuel guarantees