Report on Iran: Nuclear work ongoing (AP)

[Theres-a]

16 minutes ago

VIENNA, Austria - U.N. nuclear chief Mohamed ElBaradei said Thursday that
Iran has refused to suspend uranium enrichment as demanded by the
U.N. Security Council.

In a report to the
International Atomic Energy Agency's board of government obtained by the Associated Press, ElBaradei said "Iran has not suspended its enrichment related activities" and was continuing a variety of enrichment activities.

With the stage set for a fresh showdown between Iran and Western powers, Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice said Thursday that the U.S. and its allies would use the U.N. Security Council and other "available channels" to bring Tehran back to negotiations over its nuclear program.

**Snip**

The Security Council is demanding an immediate and unconditional stop to uranium enrichment, after which European-led negotiations over an economic reward package could begin. Iran, which has long insisted it will not stop its nuclear activities as a precondition for negotiations, missed a Wednesday Security Council deadline to halt enrichment.
**Snip**

"The enemy is making a big mistake if it thinks it can thwart the will of the Iranian nation to achieve the peaceful use of nuclear technology," Iranian state TV's Web site quoted President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as saying Wednesday.

The IAEA planned to send its report on Iran's compliance Thursday to the agency's 35-nation board and to the Security Council.

Although any finding that Iran has ignored the deadline on enrichment would be a step toward additional sanctions, it was not clear whether U.N. Security Council members Russia and China would go along.

*Snip*

There was no independent confirmation of the information provided by the group, which the United States and the European Union list as a terrorist organization. But it has revealed past secret Iranian nuclear activities subsequently verified by the IAEA or governments.

FULL STORY: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070222/ap_on_re_mi_ea/nuclear_iran

[bemildred]

1. "it was not clear whether U.N. Security Council members Russia and China would go along"

So this is just more unilateral windbaggery.

[pampango]

3. Why does the UN waste its time investigating these things, if

nothing will be done?

In Iraq things would have been so much better if the UN inspectors had been allowed to do their jobs and then let the UN deal with the results. In Iran the same thing should happen.

The US must stay away from unilateral action. Unfortunately, the reputation of the UN will sink, if the cycle of resolutions - investigations - resolutions continues. I believe that the problems with the UN are a function of the countries that make it up, but it is too valuable an institution to be careless about its reputation.

[maddezmom]

2. Rice says Europe, Russia want Iran talks

BERLIN - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday that U.S., European and Russian diplomats have a common goal to encourage Iran back to the bargaining table over its disputed nuclear program.

"We reconfirmed we will use available channels and the Security Council to try to achieve that goal," the top U.S. diplomat said. Rice spoke following a breakfast meeting with her counterparts from Germany, Russia and the European Union.

The group reviewed Iran's compliance with a U.N. Security Council demand that it stop enriching uranium, a key step toward producing either nuclear power or a nuclear weapon.

After the meeting ended, the U.N. nuclear watchdog released a report formally confirming the Islamic republic's refusal to freeze enrichment.

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070222/ap_on_re_mi_ea/us_iran

[blues90]

4. Iran will never be bullied

They are not going to give up their nuclear mission . The US is just pushing this to the limits and now that the US has their missile program in Poland this is not going to find favor with Russia and will perhaps begin another cold war with a hot war in Iran .

[Heidi]

5. Kick.

:kick:

[Laura PourMeADrink]

6. UN: Iran put nuke program in high gear

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0702230076feb23,1,151695.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed

UN: Iran put nuke program in high gear

By Bob Drogin
Tribune Newspapers: Los Angeles Times
Published February 23, 2007


VIENNA -- Iran has accelerated its program to enrich uranium and defied a UN Security Council deadline to suspend nuclear activities, the UN nuclear watchdog said here Thursday.

The report by Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, confirmed that Iran recently began installing the first of 3,000 gas centrifuges in a heavily fortified underground chamber at Natanz and that it plans to "bring them gradually into operation by May 2007."

A facility that large, if it functions properly, could produce enough highly enriched uranium in a year to build a nuclear warhead. A senior United Nations diplomat in Vienna cautioned that the Iranian schedule is "fairly optimistic" and said that the highly sensitive centrifuge cascades may not be operational before the fall.

The six-page report is almost certain to trigger moves by the Bush administration and its European allies for stiffer UN sanctions against the hard-line Iranian regime. The growing crisis now moves to London, where major powers will meet Monday to consider a range of actions against Iran. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, in Berlin, said the United States is determined to "use all available channels, and the Security Council" to draft a new resolution aimed at halting Tehran's nuclear activity.


more...

[leveymg]

7. The commercial-scale plant is a nice bargaining chip.

Iran's not going to give up its program -- not under threat, anyway -- but, it could well agree to scaling back enrichment, a lot,in exchange for security guarantees and regional settlement of the Iraq mess.