02 November 2009: FNA
TEHRAN (FNA)- Mark Fitzpatrick, a senior American official, said the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and its director general
would guarantee the delivery of fuel to Iran.
Fitzpatrick, who is a Senior Fellow for Non-Proliferation with the
International Institute for Strategic Studies and acts as an advisor to
the US State Department in nuclear affairs, said the best guarantee for
Iran to ensure the West would deliver upon its promises to provide
nuclear fuel to Iranian power plants was the one by the IAEA because
the international nuclear watchdog was frankly after having the plan
ratified and implemented.
He further told the Islamic republic news agency in an exclusive
interview that lack of trust in the opposite side certainly existed in
both Iran and the West.
In answer to a question whether anything existed to guarantee that
the West would fulfill its promises after receiving Iran's low-enriched
uranium and not continue creating obstacles, he said since the IAEA was
the body which was in charge of handling the whole affair, it would
naturally be responsible for the effective implementation of the plan.
He further believed that Iran faced no logical restrictions in
cooperating with countries which are capable of providing the nuclear
fuel it needs for its power plants.
Iran's Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has stated that the
nuclear talks with a number of Western countries was only on providing
the fuel needed for the Tehran nuclear plant, stating that uranium
enrichment for other reactors was not suspended and the projects are
still going on.
Iran's nuclear negotiations entered a new phase in October this
year when the IAEA chief, Mohamed ElBaradei, proposed that Iran would
sent 75 percent of its uranium which has been enriched to the degree of
3.5 percent - totalling 1200 kgs - first to Russia and then to France
to get the 20-percent enriched uranium it needs for medical purposes.
Later on, Iran declined to accept France as one of the options to
receive Iran's uranium initially sent to Russia and said since Paris
has been insincere in fulfilling its promises in the past, Iran did not
trust it this time either.
Still, many experts say it is Iran's right to continue its
enrichment program because they say there is no mention of stopping or
suspending such activities in the agreement reached.
Iran, too, has made it clear that it does not trust in the West and
could not afford to stop its programs in a gesture of
confidence-building with the West because it has already trusted in
Western countries once before and saw them fail to keep their promises.