THE UN: The United States has accused the UN nuclear watchdog of weakening its credibility by denying there was evidence Iran was seeking atomic weapons, but the agency's chief has called the US criticism "disingenuous".
Washington says Iran has a secret programme to develop atomic bombs and was enraged when an International Atomic Energy Agency report concluded there was "no evidence" of this.
The US ambassador to the IAEA, Mr Kenneth Brill, said this phrase was "highly unfortunate" and that the agency should have used the words "no proof" instead. He said its wording provoked "expressions of disbelief that the institution charged with . . . scrutinising nuclear proliferation risks was dismissing important facts".
The agency report said Iran concealed a uranium-enrichment programme for 18 years and secretly reprocessed plutonium useable in weapons. It said there was "no evidence" of an arms programme but the jury was still out as to whether one existed.
The US now wants an agency resolution finding Iran in "non-compliance" with its international non-proliferation obligations - which could eventually bring UN sanctions - but Britain, France and Germany want a softer line.
Diplomats from both sides were at loggerheads over a text after talks late into Thursday in Vienna, the agency's base. An agency spokeswoman said a final draft would be tabled to the board of governors next Wednesday at the earliest.
"So much of what Iran has said in the past year about its nuclear programme has turned out to be false that there is no rational basis simply to assume the contrary now," Mr Brill said, adding that Iran's "pursuit of nuclear weapons" was clear.
The head of the IAEA, Dr Mohamed ElBaradei, lashed back at Mr Brill, calling the US statement "disingenuous". He also took a shot at Washington about its unproven allegations that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein had revived his atomic weapons programme.
"We used the word 'evidence' here as we have used it over the last year, repeatedly, in the case of Iraq where we said that we had no evidence that Iraq had resuscitated its nuclear weapons programme," Dr ElBaradei told the IAEA board.
Other European board members have joined Washington in refusing to back a revised French, German and British resolution for being too weak in its condemnation of Iran's cover-up.
"The Americans are annoyed with the big three, the Europeans are annoyed with the big three and Tehran is annoyed with the big three," a Western diplomat said yesterday before the second day of closed-door meetings began.
Several diplomats said the French, British and Germans had annoyed other Europeans on the IAEA board by monopolising the drafting process and refusing to strengthen it to express views of European capitals who feel closer to Washington's position.
The Iranians, on the other hand, have been worried the trio might back out of a promise they made in October not to support a resolution declaring Iran in non-compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. - (Reuters)