Flexibility Needed on Nuclear Crises, ElBaradei Says

The international community should consider a range of options in dealing with the nuclear programs of Iran and North Korea, International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Mohamed ElBaradei said today (see GSN, Nov. 28).

“Sanctions alone do not solve issues,” he said in Tokyo, according to Agence France-Presse.

“The focus in addition to sanctions should be on how to bring North Korea back to the negotiating table, how to make sure that North Korea shows the necessary flexibility, and ultimately to be able to succeed in defusing the nuclear crisis in North Korea,” ElBaradei said.  “The same applies to the situation in Iran.”

The U.N. Security Council sanctioned Pyongyang following its Oct. 9 nuclear test, and is considering action against Tehran over its refusal to freeze uranium enrichment activities (Agence France-Presse/Yahoo!News, Dec. 1).

The purpose of Iran’s nuclear program remains unclear, ElBaradei said yesterday, according to ITAR-Tass.

“As for the nature of the Iranian nuclear program, it is still questionable,” he said (ITAR-Tass, Nov. 30).

Back to top
About Newswire  |  Contact National Journal  |  Re-Use Guidelines © Copyright 2008 by National Journal Group, Inc. The material in this section is produced independently for NTI by National Journal Group, Inc. Any reproduction or retransmission, in whole or in part, is a violation of federal law and is strictly prohibited without the consent of the National Journal Group, Inc. All rights reserved.