Disarmament Documentation

'[T]he time has now come for the Security Council to become involved', E3/EU Statement on Iran, January 30, 2006

Council of the European Union, 2706th External Relations, Council meeting Brussels, January 30, 2006.

Council conclusions on Iran

The Council adopted the following conclusions:

"The European Union is gravely concerned at the removal of seals at several nuclear installations, including at Natanz, and Iran's decision to resume enrichment related activities. The EU calls on Iran to re-instate the seals and to re-establish full, sustained and verifiable suspension of all enrichment-related and reprocessing activities as called for repeatedly in IAEA Board of Governors' resolutions as an essential confidence building measure.

In line with the requests made in IAEA Board of Governors Resolutions the EU emphasizes the need for Iran to refrain from all enrichment related and reprocessing activities until international confidence is restored.

This is not a dispute between Iran and Europe, but between Iran and the international community. The EU does not question the right of Iran to the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes in conformity with its obligations under the NPT, a right which we have consistently reaffirmed. The dispute is about Iran's failure to build the necessary confidence as to the exclusively peaceful nature of its programme. This confidence has further eroded as a result of the unilateral steps Iran has taken contrary to its commitments. The Council noted with concern that the Director General has reported that the IAEA is not yet in a position to clarify some important issues after two and a half years of intensive inspections and investigation and that Iran's full transparency is indispensable and overdue.

Source: French Foreign Ministry website, http://www.diplomatie.fr.

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