Iran has admitted that it secretly imported uranium from China more than a decade ago, an action that failed to comply with its nuclear nonproliferation obligations, according to a recently released document from the International Atomic Energy Agency (see GSN, June 6).  The report was distributed to diplomats prior to a June 16 IAEA meeting (Joby Warrick, Washington Post, June 6).

“Iran has failed to meet its obligations under its safeguards agreement with respect to the reporting of nuclear material, the subsequent processing and use of that material and the declaration of facilities where the material was stored and processed,” the document says.

Specifically, the report says Iran imported 1.8 metric tons of natural uranium, an amount that is “not insignificant in terms of a state’s ability to conduct nuclear research and development activities,” according to the report.

The report says, “Iran has acknowledged the production of uranium metal, uranyl nitrate, ammonium uranyl carbonates, UO2 [uranium dioxide] pellets and uranium wastes”

Summarizing, the report says, “the number of failures by Iran to report the material, facilities and activities in question in a timely manner as it is obliged to do pursuant to its safeguards agreement is a matter of concern” (Reuters/Planet Ark, June 9). 

On Friday, U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said, “the report and Iran’s programs themselves are deeply troubling” (State Department transcript, June 6).

Iranian officials admitted that they did not report the uranium imports but they said Iran did not violate any international nuclear agreements.

“There is no mention of the word ‘violation,’” said Gholamreza Aghazadeh, head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization.  “The report only mentions ‘failure,’ which is still a legal debate between us.  And these are normal differences,” he added (Ali Akbar Dareini, Associated Press/Raleigh News and Observer, June 8).

Aghazadeh maintained that the 1991 incident does not reflect on Iran’s current compliance.

“The report goes back to 12 years ago and has nothing to do with the organization’s current activities in the nuclear sector,” he added (Reuters/Moscow Times, June 9).

Iranian officials said that the report actually shows Tehran is cooperating with the international atomic agency.

“This report, like other reports by the agency’s chief, bears legal points and indicates Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization’s transparent interaction with the IAEA,” said organization spokesman Khalil Moosavi.  “America is repeating its claims against Iran … repeating such claims does not mean being able to prove them,” he added (Parinoosh Arami, Reuters, June 7).

Nuclear experts said the report might force Iran to act.

“It puts Iran on notice,” said David Albright, a former IAEA inspector and president of the Institute for Science and International Security.  “There’s a clock ticking, and Iran cannot delay answering to the IAEA much longer,” he added (Warrick, Washington Post).

Spent Fuel Agreement Close

Iran is prepared to sign an agreement to return spent nuclear fuel to Russia, according to the Iranian ambassador to Moscow.  Russia has said it will not supply nuclear fuel to Iran until Tehran formally agrees to return it after it is exhausted.

“Iran is willing, even now, to sign this protocol, and all we are waiting for in this respect is the elimination of the problems of an environmental nature connected with this implementation of this document on the Russian side,” said Gholamreza Shafe’i.  The agreement “has already been agreed by the two sides and the relevant ministers are to sign it,” he added (Interfax, June 6 in FBIS-SOV, June 5).

The ambassador was less decisive about Iran’s accession to the Additional Protocol to its IAEA safeguards agreement, designed to give U.N. nuclear inspectors the right to conduct more stringent inspections.

“The protocol stipulates certain commitments on our part, but we must have some rights as well,” he said (Interfax II, June 6 in FBIS-SOV, June 5).

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