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IAEA Resolution on Iran, Text and International Reaction, November 26

• IAEA Resolution: Implementation of the NPT Safeguards Agreement in the Islamic Republic of Iran, November 26
• IAEA statement
• US statements & comment
• Russia
• United Kingom
• France

IAEA Resolution: Implementation of the NPT Safeguards Agreement in the Islamic Republic of Iran, November 26

'Resolution adopted by the Board on 26 November 2003,' International Atomic Energy Agency, Board of Governors, GOV/2003/81, Derestricted 26 November 2003.

The Board of Governors,

(a) Recalling the Resolution adopted by the Board on 12 September 2003 (GOV/2003/69), in which the Board, inter alia:

- expressed concern over failures by the Islamic Republic of Iran to report material, facilities and activities that Iran is obliged to report pursuant to its Safeguards Agreement;

- decided it was essential and urgent, in order to ensure IAEA verification of non-diversion of nuclear material, that Iran remedy all failures identified by the Agency and cooperate fully with the Agency by taking all necessary actions by the end of October 2003;

- requested Iran to work with the Secretariat to promptly and unconditionally sign, ratify and fully implement the Additional Protocol, and, as a confidence-building measure, to act thenceforth in accordance with the Additional Protocol; and

- called on Iran to suspend all further uranium enrichment-related activities, including the further introduction of nuclear material into Natanz, and any reprocessing activities,

(b) Welcoming the Agreed Statement between the Foreign Ministers of France, Germany and the United Kingdom and the Secretary of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council issued in Tehran on 21 October,

(c) Noting with appreciation the Director General's report of 10 November 2003 (GOV/2003/75), on the implementation of safeguards in Iran,

(d) Commending the Director General and the Secretariat for their professional and impartial efforts to implement the Safeguards Agreement with Iran and to resolve all outstanding safeguards issues in Iran, in pursuance of the Agency's mandate and of the implementation, inter alia,of the Resolution adopted by the Board on 12 September 2003 (GOV/2003/69),

(e) Acknowledging that Vice-President Aghazadeh of the Islamic Republic of Iran has reaffirmed his country's decision to provide a full picture of its nuclear activities and has also reaffirmed his country's decision to implement a policy of cooperation and full transparency,

(f) Noting with deep concern that Iran has failed in a number of instances over an extended period of time to meet its obligations under its Safeguards Agreement with respect to the reporting of nuclear material, and its processing and use, as well as the declaration of facilities where such material has been processed and stored, as set out in paragraph 48 of the Director General's report,

(g) Noting in particular, with the gravest concern, that Iran enriched uranium and separated plutonium in undeclared facilities, in the absence of IAEA safeguards,

(h) Noting also, with equal concern, that there has been in the past a pattern of concealment resulting in breaches of safeguard obligations and that the new information disclosed by Iran and reported by the Director General includes much more that is contradictory to information previously provided by Iran,

(i) Noting that the Director General, in his opening statement, indicated that Iran has begun cooperating more actively with the IAEA and has given assurances that it is committed to a policy of full disclosure,

(j) Recognising that, in addition to the corrective actions already taken, Iran has undertaken to present all nuclear material for Agency verification during its forthcoming inspections,

(k) Emphasising that, in order to restore confidence, Iranian cooperation and transparency will need to be complete and sustained so that the Agency can resolve all outstanding issues and, over time, provide and maintain the assurances required by Member States,

(l) Noting with satisfaction that Iran has indicated that it is prepared to sign the Additional Protocol, and that, pending its entry into force, Iran will act in accordance with the provisions of that Protocol,

(m) Noting that the Director General, in his opening statement, reported that Iran has decided to suspend enrichment-related and reprocessing activities,

(n) Stressing that the voluntary suspension by Iran of all its uranium enrichment-related activities and reprocessing activities remains of key importance to rebuilding international confidence,

(o) Recognising the inalienable right of States to the development and practical application of atomic energy for peaceful purposes, including the production of electric power, with due consideration for the needs of developing countries,

(p) Stressing the need for effective safeguards in order to prevent the use of nuclear material for prohibited purposes in contravention of safeguards agreements, and underlining the vital importance of effective safeguards for facilitating cooperation in the field of peaceful uses of nuclear energy,

1. Welcomes Iran's offer of active cooperation and openness and its positive response to the demands of the Board in the resolution adopted by Governors on 12 September 2003 (GOV/2003/69) and underlines that, in proceeding, the Board considers it essential that the declarations that have now been made by Iran amount to the correct, complete and final picture of Iran's past and present nuclear programme, to be verified by the Agency;

2. Strongly deplores Iran's past failures and breaches of its obligation to comply with the provisions of its Safeguards Agreement, as reported by the Director General; and urges Iran to adhere strictly to its obligations under its Safeguards Agreement in both letter and spirit;

3. Notes the statement by the Director General that Iran has taken the specific actions deemed essential and urgent and requested of it in paragraph 4 of the Resolution adopted by the Board on 12 September 2003 (GOV/2003/69);

4. Requests the Director General to take all steps necessary to confirm that the information provided by Iran on its past and present nuclear activities is correct and complete as well as to resolve such issues as remain outstanding;

5. Endorses the view of the Director General that, to achieve this, the Agency must have a particularly robust verification system in place: an Additional Protocol, coupled with a policy of full transparency and openness on the part of Iran, is indispensable;

6. Reiterates that the urgent, full and close co-operation with the Agency of all third countries is essential in the clarification of outstanding questions concerning Iran's nuclear programme;

7. Calls on Iran to undertake and complete the taking of all necessary corrective measures on an urgent basis, to sustain full cooperation with the Agency in implementing Iran's commitment to full disclosure and unrestricted access, and thus to provide the transparency and openness that are indispensable for the Agency to complete the considerable work necessary to provide and maintain the assurances required by Member States;

8. Decides that, should any further serious Iranian failures come to light, the Board of Governors would meet immediately to consider, in the light of the circumstances and of advice from the Director General, all options at its disposal, in accordance with the IAEA Statute and Iran's Safeguards Agreement;

9. Notes with satisfaction the decision of Iran to conclude an Additional Protocol to its Safeguards Agreement, and re-emphasises the importance of Iran moving swiftly to ratification and also of Iran acting as if the Protocol were in force in the interim, including by making all declarations required within the required timeframe;

10. Welcomes Iran's decision voluntarily to suspend all enrichment-related and reprocessing activities and requests Iran to adhere to it, in a complete and verifiable manner; and also endorses the Director General's acceptance of Iran's invitation to verify implementation of that decision and report thereon;

11. Requests the Director General to submit a comprehensive report on the implementation of this resolution by mid- February 2004, for consideration by the March Board of Governors, or to report earlier if appropriate; and

12. Decides to remain seized of the matter.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency, http://www.iaea.org.

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Statement by IAEA Director General Dr Mohamed ElBaradei

'Opening Remarks at the Press Conference on the Outcome of the Board of Governors' Consideration of the Implementation of Safeguards in the Islamic Republic of Iran by IAEA Director General Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei,' November 26, 2003.

1. This is a good day for peace, multilateralism and non-proliferation.
2. 
   
   
   • A good day for peace because the Board decided to continue to make every effort to use verification and diplomacy to resolve questions about Iran's nuclear programme.
   • 
     
     
   • A good day for multilateralism because the international community has decided to stand as one in addressing what is clearly a very critical issue, with serious implications.
   • 
     
     
   • A good day for non-proliferation because of the clear message coming from the international community that the integrity of the nuclear non-proliferation regime must be respected and upheld.
   
   
   
3. By today's decision, the international community affirmed, in no uncertain terms, the integrity of the nuclear non-proliferation regime by strongly deploring Iran's failures and breaches to comply with its obligations under the safeguards agreement. The international community also laid down a marker that Iran must strictly adhere to its non-proliferation obligations in both letter and spirit through a policy of active co-operation and full transparency. Importantly, and in addition, it made it clear that any serious failures in the future by Iran to comply with its obligations will be met with an appropriately serious response.
4. 
   
   
5. From a nuclear non-proliferation perspective we are in new territory with respect to Iran's nuclear programme. Through verification and diplomacy we now know much more about this programme, its nature, extent and development, than at any time in the past. Corrective actions to address past breaches and failures have been and are being taken by Iran. Iran has committed itself to a policy of full disclosure and has decided, as a confidence building measure, not only to sign the Additional Protocol, making way for more robust and comprehensive inspections, but also to take the important step of suspending all enrichment related and reprocessing activities and to accept IAEA verification of this suspension. These are positive and welcome steps which I very much hope will be sustained.
6. 
   
   
7. While much progress has been achieved, much work remains to be done. This is work in progress. We naturally still have much verification work to do before we can provide the assurances expected by the international community, specifically that all nuclear activities in Iran are fully declared and are exclusively for peaceful purposes. These assurances could clearly help build confidence and could open the way for a new chapter of co-operation between Iran and the international community. Our success and pace of progress in generating the required assurance will, however, depend on Iran's full co-operation and transparency; the ball is now in Iran's court to demonstrate through verification the peaceful nature of its programme. Our success will also depend on getting full co-operation from all relevant countries, particularly those that were the source of some of the nuclear material and equipment in Iran. In the next few weeks and months the IAEA will be fully engaged in Iran and will carry out intensive verification activities. I will be reporting again to the IAEA Board of Governors in February or earlier if appropriate.

Source: International Atomic Energy Agency, http://www.iaea.org.

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International Reaction

United States

'Action will be forthcoming... if there is any indication in future that Iran is not meeting its obligations', Secretary of State Colin Powell, November 25

'Powell Thanks Macedonia for Its Support against Terrorism', Washington File, November 25, 2003.

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, it seems to be that an agreement is shaping up at the IAEA. You've reached agreement with the Europeans. Can you say whether you think that this agreement that you've reached is strong enough to hold Iran accountable for any further violations if they make them?

SECRETARY POWELL: Yes, as you know, we've worked very hard over the past week with our European colleagues and other colleagues around the world, who constitute the Board of the International Atomic Energy Agency, some 35 nations. And a resolution was tabled yesterday that I expect will be voted on tomorrow, and we're very satisfied with that resolution.

The resolution notes all that Iran has been doing over the years, with respect to its nuclear programs. It notes that Iran has been in breach of obligations. And there is one particular paragraph in the resolution which makes it very, very clear that if Iran does not now comply with its obligations and the other agreements it's entered into, then this will be a matter that will be immediately referred to the IAEA Board of Governors for action, as appropriate, under the various statutes.

So that's, I think, an important element in the resolution, an element that we wanted to see in the resolution, which points out that action will be forthcoming, appropriately so, if there is any indication in the future that Iran is not meeting its obligations.

So I'm very happy with the resolution. I'd like to thank my European Union colleagues, who worked so hard on it, especially the EU 3, as well as other members of the IAEA Board of Governors, that we've worked closely with. We're pleased with it.

'an immediate report to the UNSC would be necessary', US Ambassador to International Organisations in Vienna Kenneth Brill

'United States Welcomes IAEA Resolution on Iran', Washington File, November 26, 2003.

US Ambassador to International Organizations in Vienna, Kenneth Brill:"By strongly deploring Iran's past failures and breaches of its obligations to comply' with its Safeguards Agreement, the Board has expressed the international community's unity in rejecting Iran's policies of denial, delay, and deception, and acknowledged Iran's past behavior as noncompliance."

"...should any serious Iranian failures come to light, the Board of Governors would meet immediately to consider, in the light of the circumstances and of advice from the Director General, all options at its disposal."

"Iran should make no mistake about our resolve that under such circumstances, an immediate report to the UNSC [United Nations Security Council] would be necessary."

US State Department Spokesperson Richard Boucher on Russia's assistance to Iran in building a light water reactor for power generation: "Our view is, people ought to be careful, continue to be careful about their programs, particularly at this moment, when Iran has not yet implemented all its commitments."

'United States Welcomes IAEA Resolution on Iran', Washington File, November 26, 2003.

Source: US Department of State, Washington File, http://usinfo.state.gov.

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Russia

'Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Kislyak Answers a Question from ITAR-TASS News Agency Regarding the Adoption by IAEA Board of Governors of a Resolution on Iran', Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, November 28, 2003

Question: Please comment on the adoption by IAEA Board of Governors of a resolution on the implementation of the Safeguards Agreement Pursuant to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty in Iran.

Answer: We feel this document could have been made more precisely reconciled. However, this is a compromise, and it reflects the common point of view.

It is important that there is the process and the new character of the Iran-IAEA relations. In accordance with the international agreements further work to finally remove all the concerns about the nuclear program of Iran will proceed via the IAEA. We consider very important such cooperation, which has become possible thanks to the new quality of relations between the IAEA and Iran.

Moscow welcomes the decision of Iran to transmit to the IAEA the whole of information on its previous nuclear activities. This is a major political step by a country which has decided to cooperate with the international community to ensure a maximum transparency of its nuclear program.

Source: Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, http://www.russianembassy.org.

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'On the Adoption by IAEA Board of Governors of a Resolution on the Implementation of the Safeguards Agreement Pursuant to the NPT in Iran', Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Press Release, November 27, 2003

The resolution expresses deep regret over the previous cases of failure by Iran to fulfill its obligations connected with the Safeguards Agreement. We share those appraisals...

It is important that the questions of ensuring the transparency of the Iranian nuclear program will continue to be dealt with in the framework of the IAEA with reliance upon its monitoring instruments. Accordingly, the adopted resolution determines the procedure for subsequent actions to be taken by the Agency to definitively clarify the questions still outstanding.

Russia expects that this work in the conditions of the new character of cooperation between the IAEA and Iran will continue to be carried out objectively, without unnecessary politicization.

Source: Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, http://www.russianembassy.org.

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United Kingdom

FOREIGN SECRETARY WELCOMES IAEA IRAN RESOLUTION (26/11/03)

Following the adoption of the IAEA Resolution on Iran, the Foreign Secretary said today:

'I welcome this Resolution on Iran, adopted by consensus among the Board of Governors of the IAEA. It is an important step forward in the international community's efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons.'

'When I visited Tehran on 20 to 21 October with my fellow Foreign Ministers, Dominique de Villepin and Joschka Fischer, we all urged Iran to meet in full its obligations to the IAEA. The Resolution is the result of the intensive diplomatic consultations, which followed this visit.'

'We and our partners look forward to continued co-operation with Iran.'

Source: UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office, http://www.fco.gov.uk.

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France

Iran / IAEA adopted a resolution on proliferation in the nuclear domain Last update : 26/11/03

Statement by the French Foreign Ministry Spokesperson

(Paris, 26 November 2003)

The board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) adopted by consensus of its 35 member states a resolution on proliferation in the nuclear domain in Iran. The resolution was presented by the ambassadors of France, Germany and the United Kingdom.

The initiative is in line with the process begun with Iran when Mr. Fischer, Straw and de Villepin visited the country on October 21, a visit that resulted in the joint statement from Teheran. The resolution is the product of broad consultations among the three Europeans, their partners in the Union, the United States, Russia, China and South Africa, and all the other members of the board of governors. It illustrates the merits of multilateral management in this type of crisis.

France is very satisfied with this resolution. The context is balanced, it passes a very firm judgment on Iran's past activities in the nuclear sphere and encourages it to continue and confirm its choice for a new policy of transparency and cooperation with the international community. As President Chirac said, the resolution goes in the direction of efforts by the international community to convince the Iranians effectively to take, and continue to take, all the indispensable measures for restoring confidence.

Teheran has recognized its failure to comply with its obligations in the nuclear domain over the past 15 years. It has suspended uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities and will shortly be signing an enhanced safeguards protocol with the IAEA. France intends to remain vigilant regarding the implementation of these measures.

A process has begun with Iran. It will be continued in the perspective of the next board of governors meeting in February. For our part, we plan, together with our partners, to maintain regular dialogue with Teheran.

Source: http://www.diplomatie.fr.

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© 2003 The Acronym Institute.