IAEA needs more money to help implement Iran nuclear deal

The UN atomic watchdog will probably need more money to verify the implementation of a landmark nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers, its chief said on Thursday, and it would take some time to prepare for the task.

Yukiya Amano also said Iran has invited the agency to visit the Arak heavy-water production plant on December 8, the first concrete step under a new cooperation pact aimed at clarifying concerns about the Islamic Republic's nuclear program.

Both agreements indicate how Iran is acting quickly to address fears about its nuclear program after the election in June of a relative moderate, Hassan Rouhani, as new president on a platform to smooth its troubled relations with the world.

The International Atomic Energy Agency can mobilize expertise and staff from within the organization for an increased workload in checking whether Iran is complying with the interim accord with the major powers to curb its nuclear program, IAEA Director General Amano told a news conference.

But its budget is very tight, he added: "Naturally this requires a significant amount of money and manpower ... I don't think we can cover everything by our own budget."

The Arak facility produces heavy water intended for use in a nearby research reactor that is under construction. The West is concerned that the reactor, which Iran has said could start up next year, could yield plutonium as fuel for atomic bombs once operational. Iran says it will make medical isotopes only.

As part of its agreement with the powers, Iran is to halt installation work at the reactor and stop making fuel for it.

The IAEA will need to expand monitoring of Iran's uranium enrichment plants and other sites under the November 24 breakthrough deal reached after marathon talks between Iran and the United States, Russia, China, France, Germany and Britain.

The IAEA was studying how to put into practice the agreement with respect to its inspectors' role in checking compliance and this would take "some time," Amano said, adding it was a complicated task that needed proper preparations.

"This (analysis) will include the implications for funding and staffing," he separately told the IAEA's 35-nation board.

More: http://zeenews.india.com/news/world/iaea-needs-more-money-to-help-implement-iran-nuclear-deal_893124.html

U.N. Nuclear Inspectors Invited to Iranian Facility

Days after Iran struck a landmark accord with world powers on its nuclear program, the International Atomic Energy Agency announced on Thursday that Tehran had invited its inspectors to visit a heavy-water production plant linked to the deal — the first tangible step since the agreement was concluded.

In a speech in Vienna, the agency’s director general, Yukiya Amano, said the invitation was for inspectors to travel to the plant in Arak, in central Iran, on Dec. 8. Mr. Amano told reporters that it was “for sure” that inspectors would accept the offer.

¶The invitation was limited to the heavy-water production facility on the same site as a reactor that is under construction and to which international inspectors have had some access, Mr. Amano said. The facility producing heavy water, used in some types of reactors to control nuclear activity, has been off limits to inspectors for more than two years.

¶Part of the deal reached with world powers in Geneva specifically provided for Iran not to produce fuel for the Arak plant, install additional reactor components there or put the plant into operation. If it became fully operational, the reactor would produce plutonium that could be used in a nuclear weapon.

¶In return for that and other curbs on Tehran’s nuclear program, the powers promised a limited easing of the international economic sanctions that have crippled the Iranian economy.

¶The speed with which Tehran offered access to Arak was taken by some analysts as a sign that Iran’s leaders wanted to press ahead with the deal, which is intended as an interim accord lasting six months during which negotiators are to discuss a comprehensive settlement.

¶The dispute hinges on the purpose of Iran’s nuclear program, which Western leaders say is intended to acquire the technology for atomic weapons. Iran says the program is for peaceful purposes.

¶Mr. Amano also told the agency’s board on Thursday that Catherine Ashton, the European Union’s top foreign policy official, who played a central part in the negotiations, had said in a letter that the I.A.E.A., the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, “will have an important role in the verification of the nuclear-related measures” agreed to in Geneva. He suggested that the agency might need more money and experts to fulfill that role.

¶“We are now looking at the way in which the elements of the agreement relevant to the agency could be put into practice,” he said. “This will include the implications for funding and staffing. This analysis will take some time.” Diplomats said the review could take until January.

¶Mr. Amano, who visited Tehran on Nov. 11, said he had agreed with high-ranking officials there that Iran would permit “managed access” to at least two contentious sites: the Gachin mine in Bandar Abbas and the Arak plant, which Iranian officials say is intended to produce medical isotopes.

¶The term “managed access” usually denotes arrangements allowing host countries to protect information that they consider proprietary or secret, while permitting inspectors to collect the data they require, officials said.

¶The promise of inspections did not extend to the Parchin military site southwest of Tehran, where I.A.E.A. inspectors suspect that Iran at one time tested triggering devices for nuclear weapons.

¶The organization has also questioned whether the Gachin mine, which produces yellowcake uranium for conversion to nuclear fuel, is linked to Iran’s military. Mr. Amano’s announcement on Thursday did not specifically mention access to the mine. But, he said, “all other outstanding issues” relating to the I.A.E.A.’s differences with Iran would be addressed “in subsequent steps.”

More: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/29/world/middleeast/iran-nuclear-inspections.html?_r=0#h[]

No N-deal, yet much accomplished

Diplomats insisted they are closing in on an agreement to curb Iran's nuclear programme despite the failure to clinch a long-sought deal in marathon negotiations in Geneva.

As Tehran said it would not abandon its "right" to enrichment, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would do all it could to keep the so-called P5+1 group of world powers from striking a "bad and dangerous" deal.

American Secretary of State John Kerry defended US negotiations with Iran, saying Washington is "not blind" and is keeping Israel's best interests at heart, ahead of a visit by UN nuclear chief Yukiya Amano to Tehran on Monday.

Hopes for a deal had soared after top diplomats rushed to Geneva to join the talks, but faded again as cracks began to appear among world powers when France raised concerns over a heavy water reactor being built at Arak. The talks ended in the early hours of Sunday.

But diplomats on Sunday insisted they were zeroing in on an agreement to lift some of the crippling sanctions on Iranin return for the freezing of much of its nuclear programme, and planned to meet again from November 20.

The pause in talks has given a window of opportunity for opponents, particularly Israel, to derail the deal. Israel sees Iran's nuclear programme as a threat to its existence.

The short-term deal would have reportedly frozen or curbed some of Iran's nuclear activities, which Israel and the West suspect are aimed at developing the ability to build a nuclear weapon.

Tehran-IAEA pact
Iran will grant UN inspectors "managed access" to a uranium mine and a heavy water plant within three months as part of a cooperation pact reached on Monday aimed at allaying international concern about Tehran's nuclear programme.

It was signed by IAEA chief Yukiya Amano in Tehran after Iran and six world powers failed in weekend talks in Geneva to clinch a broader diplomatic deal to end a decade-old deadlock over Iran's atomic activity.

Meanwhile, Iran and Britain named non-resident charges d'affaires to each other's capital, in moves aimed at restoring diplomatic ties severed after the British embassy was ransacked in 2011.

More: http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/no-n-deal-yet-much-accomplished/article1-1150034.aspx

Hopes rise for Iran nuclear accord soon; Netanyahu warns against 'very bad deal'

Western diplomats and Iran appear to be inching toward a breakthrough agreement that could slow the nation's suspected progress toward a nuclear bomb while easing some sanctions that have hobbled its economy.

Top diplomats from the United States, France, Great Britain and Germany rushed to Geneva on Friday to see whether they could close the deal, which has emerged suddenly after years of frustrating stalemates and Western suspicions of Iranian cat-and-mouse games with international weapons inspectors.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov may join them on Saturday, Russia's state-run Ria Novosti news service reported. China's foreign minister is also headed to Geneva, according to Press TV.

The planned arrivals Saturday of those officials suggested negotiations did not reach a deal Friday night, as the chief Iranian negotiator -- Prime Minister Javad Zarif -- had earlier predicted.

Negotiations on Saturday will include a meeting of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and Zarif.

"The negotiations have reached (a) critical, very sensitive situation, and it needs decisions at higher levels," Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told reporters in Geneva.

The emerging deal would ease some sanctions on Iran if it stops enriching uranium to 20% purity -- a key step on the path to a nuclear weapon -- destroys its existing stockpile and takes other steps, according two senior U.S. administration officials.

For years, international leaders have suspected Iran of working toward nuclear weapons, fearful of the instability such a scenario could bring to the already tense Middle East.

Those fears include the possibility of a pre-emptive Israeli strike that could spark a broader conflict. In the past, Iran has threatened Israel with military attack.

Iran has denied working toward a nuclear weapon, and has said it will not submit to any plan that would totally eliminate its nuclear program.

Despite those issues, Zarif said a deal is within reach.

"We are at a very sensitive stage of negotiations, and it is best if these negotiations are done at the negotiating table rather than on live television," he told CNN's Christiane Amanpour. "But I can tell you that we are prepared to address some of the most immediate concerns that have been raised, and we expect reciprocally our concerns to be met by the P5+1."

He had earlier predicted the talks could produce a deal by Friday night.


Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is not involved in the talks, warned that the proposed agreement is "the deal of a century for Iran" but a "very dangerous and bad deal for peace."

"It's a very bad deal," he said. "Iran is not required to take apart even one centrifuge. But the international community is relieving sanctions on Iran for the first time after many years. Iran gets everything that it wanted at this stage and pays nothing."

British Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted Friday that he had discussed the talks with French President Francois Hollande and they agreed the talks "offer an opportunity to make real progress."

Separately, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations' atomic watchdog agency, announced its director will travel to Iran on Monday to meet senior Iranian leaders. The agency's nuclear experts will meet the same day with their Iranian counterparts in Tehran, the agency said.

Despite the progress, officials said much work remains to be done.

Kerry said "some important gaps" remain in the negotiations, echoing earlier comments from his French counterpart, Laurent Fabius.

U.S. officials outline possible deal

Two senior U.S. administration officials said that, under the potential deal, Iran would agree:

-- to stop enriching nuclear fuel to 20% purity;

-- to render unusable most of its existing stockpile of such fuel;

-- to agree not to use advanced IR-2 centrifuges, which can enrich nuclear fuel five times faster than older centrifuges;

-- not to activate a plutonium reactor at Arak.

In turn, the P5+1 would agree:

-- to unfreeze some Iranian assets held in banks overseas;

-- to consider easing sanctions banning trade in gold, precious metals and petrochemicals.

Other sweeteners were also under consideration, they said.

One of the officials said the deal is designed to "stop Iran's progress by stopping the shortening of time by which they could build a nuclear weapon" while also providing temporary, reversible sanctions relief to Iran.

That official cautioned the deal is not done, but said it could happen if the Iranians agree to the P5+1's demands.

Most sanctions to stay in place

Speaking to NBC on Thursday, Obama said the United States would retain its "core sanctions" in place against Iran while granting "very modest relief" from economic sanctions.

"So that if it turned out during the course of the six months when we're trying to resolve some of these bigger issues that they're backing out of the deal, they're not following through on it, or they're not willing to go forward and finish the job of giving us assurances that they're not developing a nuclear weapon," Obama told NBC, "we can crank that dial back up."

Broader implications

The strategy of pursuing a phased deal "is a sensible way for the administration to proceed," said Nicholas Burns, former U.S. ambassador to NATO.

And if it works, reaching a deal with Iran would be "stunning," said Jane Harman, director of the Woodrow Wilson Center and a former member of the House Intelligence Committee.

"This is way beyond the initial deal that people speculated about," she said on CNN's "New Day" on Friday.

"If this can work, if they can get to this agreement today, I see all kinds of advantages for other issues pending in the Middle East, like Syria," she said.

Iran's cooperation could be key to ending the civil war there, she said.

'Getting to the root of the problem'

The details were hashed out during a bilateral U.S.-Iran meeting -- part of an apparent effort on each side to mend fences -- which lasted about an hour on the sidelines of broader talks under way in Geneva.

The U.S. delegation was led by Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman. The Iranian delegation was led by Deputy Foreign Minister Araqchi.

"The main issue is getting to the root of the problem, which is the enrichment issue and all things that lead from that," Michael Mann, spokesman for Ashton, said on the sidelines of negotiations.

Moments later, the Iranian state-run Fars News Agency tweeted a quote from Araqchi: "Enrichment is our red line, and its suspension is unacceptable."

When CNN asked Araqchi about the issue of uranium enrichment, he declined to answer.

"The talks are extremely complex and are now going into a serious phase," Mann said. "We want to focus on substance and hope there will be concrete progress over the next couple of days."

Zarif said Iran's nuclear program would continue in some form.

"There won't be a suspension of our enrichment program in its entirety," he said. "But we can deal with various issues. Various issues are on the table."

History of the issue

The sudden progress in meetings between Iran and the group of nations known as the P5+1 or EU3+3 -- United States, France, Britain, Russia, China and Germany -- comes after years of stalemate between Western nations and Iran over its nuclear program.

It also follows a slight thaw in relations between Iran and the West under newly elected president Hassan Rouhani.

Iran has always maintained its nuclear program is for purely peaceful purposes, despite repeated findings by U.N. weapons inspectors that the country appeared to be conducting nuclear weapons research.

In August, the International Atomic Energy Agency --the U.N. nuclear watchdog -- estimated that since declaring its nuclear program, Iran has processed 10 metric tons of uranium to 5% purity, the level used for nuclear power plants.

The International Atomic Energy Agency estimates that Iran has a stockpile of 410 pounds (185 kilograms) of uranium at 20% purity.

Weapons experts warn that this uranium could be further refined for use in a nuclear warhead.

Although experts suggest that amount would not be enough for a single warhead, the IAEA has warned that it believes Iran's nuclear program could have "possible military dimensions."

Iran has been under crippling U.N. sanctions related to its nuclear program since 2006. The United States first sanctioned Iran over its nuclear program in 2000.

Resolutions and sanctions passed by the United Nations in 2006 called on Iran to halt all enrichment activities and clarify that its nuclear facilities were being used for peaceful purposes only.

More: http://edition.cnn.com/2013/11/08/world/meast/iran-nuclear-talks/

What does the Saudi government's nuclear statement mean?

The Saudi embassy in London issued the rare public response to us on Wednesday afternoon after we had given them details of our report and the evidence it contained.

The kingdom, which is a signatory of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, has long argued that the Middle East should be a nuclear free-area.

But Wednesday's statement highlighted the "on-going failure" of the UN Security Council to achieve this aim and warned that "lack of international action has put the region under the threat of a time bomb that cannot be refused by manoeuvring around it".

Sir William Patey, former UK ambassador to Saudi Arabia, told BBC2's Newsnight programme he considered the timing of this statement, with nuclear talks ongoing with Iran in Geneva, to be significant.

The refusal of Saudi Arabia to deny our story can be seen as a continuation of signalling that started in 2009.

King Abdullah warned US Middle East envoy Dennis Ross that the kingdom would obtain nuclear weapons, and has continued in recent years with non-attributed briefing of journalists.

What many wonder, particularly in the light of Pakistan's labelling of our piece as "speculative, mischievous and baseless" - although interestingly even it did not use the word "untrue" - is whether the Saudis are simply bluffing, trying to galvanise a tougher American line on the Iranian nuclear question?

Make no mistake, Saudi Arabia, Israel and others such as the United Arab Emirates have long tried to persuade Washington to take a stronger stance on the Iranian issue.

But there are many signs that the kingdom has also thought long term about the situation it faces today, and has taken certain military precautions.

A paper leaked 10 years ago by Saudi officials detailed possible responses to the nuclear challenge as:
acquiring their own nuclear weapons
relying on another country to defend them
working for a nuclear-free Middle East

As Monday's statement shows, the kingdom no longer has any real faith in this last option.

As for relying on a foreign nuclear umbrella, could Pakistan fulfil this role?

Certainly some experts, such as Gary Samore, President Obama's chief counter-proliferation adviser until March 2013, think that the stationing of Pakistani missiles with crews and warheads inside the kingdom is the most likely way that any deal between the two countries might play out.

Yet we know also that Saudi Arabia has possessed its own possible delivery system, the 3,000km (2,000-mile) range Chinese-made CSS-2 missile, for more than 20 years.

This summer, the defence publication Jane's published details of a new base for these weapons, with launch pads aiming at Israel and Iran.

Experts such as Pakistani Maj Gen Feroz Hassan Khan, who worked in his country's nuclear program, while avoiding any confirmation of a deal with Saudi Arabia, have written that financial help from the kingdom was essential to that project.

There is enough information out there to create the impression that the kingdom could have a nuclear option and perhaps that is all it wants, in order to deter Iran from further steps.

As the invasion of Iraq showed, the beliefs of intelligence chiefs and policy makers can create their own reality in the Middle East.

Other interpretations are possible too - that a country that takes its security as seriously as the kingdom does, possesses huge financial resources, and has been anticipating this moment for over a decade would not rely simply on bluff.

And it is this fear, perhaps, that caused a senior figure in Nato to share with me a few months ago that he had read intelligence reports that nuclear warheads made in Pakistan for the kingdom were awaiting delivery.

More: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-24855902

South Korea: North restarts nuclear reactor shut since 2007

North Korea has reportedly re-started a nuclear reactor that halted operations in 2007, in a move sure to increase tensions on the Korean peninsula ahead of planned military drills by the U.S., South Korea, and Japan.

South Korea's Yonhap News Agency, citing a lawmaker who had been briefed by that country's National Intelligence Service, reported Tuesday that the Yongbyon nuclear reactor had resumed operations. The North Korean government announced this past March that it planned to resume operations at the facility, located approximately 55 miles north of Pyongyang.

Earlier Tuesday, the North's state news agency announced that its troops had been placed on emergency alert and had been given the go-ahead to launch operations at any time against the drills. The exercises were scheduled to be held between Tuesday and Thursday in the waters off the South Korea port city of Busan, but have been delayed due to bad weather.

Yonhap reported that Pyongyang particularly objected to the presence of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington, which arrived in the area Friday in preparation for the exercises. A statement by an army spokesman broadcast on North Korean state media alleged that the carrier's presence "proves that the remarks of such high-ranking officials of the U.S. Obama administration as the secretary of state that the U.S. neither pursues a hostile policy towards the DPRK nor has the will to attack it are sheer lies."

Experts interviewed by Yonhap say that the statement, the most belligerent by North Korea since this past April, appear to be tied to efforts to resume disarmament-for-aid talks involving the U.S., China, North and South Korea, Japan and Russia. The U.S. has balked at Chinese efforts to resume the talks, citing a presumed lack of seriousness from the regime of Kim Jong-Un.

Credits: foxnews

Nuclear capable Prithvi-II missile test fired from Odisha

The Government today test-fired its indigenously developed nuclear-capable Prithvi-II missile with a strike range of 350 km from a test range at Chandipur, about 15 km from here.

The surface-to-surface missile was test fired from a mobile launcher in salvo mode from launch complex-3 of the Integrated Test Range at about 9.14 AM, defence sources said.

"The missile was randomly chosen from the production stock and the total launch activities were carried out by the specially formed SFC and monitored by the scientists of DRDO as part of practice drill," the sources said.

"The missile trajectory will be tracked by the DRDO radars, electro-optical tracking systems and telemetry stations located along the coast of Odisha," they said.

"The downrange teams onboard the ship deployed near the designated impact point in theBay of Bengal will monitor the terminal events and splashdown," they said.

Inducted into India's Strategic Forces Command in 2003, the Prithvi II missile, the first missile to be developed by DRDO under India's prestigious IGMDP ( Integrated Guided Missile Development Program) is now a proven technology, said a defence source.

"The launch was part of a regular training exercise of SFC and was monitored by DRDO scientists," the source said.

Such training launches clearly indicate country's operational readiness to meet any eventuality and also establishes the reliability of this deterrent component of India's Strategic arsenal, the source said.

Prithvi is capable of carrying 500kg to 1000kg of warheads and is thrusted by liquid propulsion twine engines. It uses advanced inertial guidance system with manoeuvering trajectory.

The last user trial of Prithvi-II was successfully carried out from the same base on August 12, 2013.

Credits: economictimes

Iran says four arrested for trying to sabotage nuclear site

At least four people have been arrested in Iran for trying to sabotage a nuclear site, an Iranian official was quoted by Iranian media as saying on Sunday.

The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation,Ali Akbar Salehi, said officials had monitored and then arrested a "number of saboteurs" before they could carry out their plan.

"Four of these individuals were caught red-handed and their interrogations are ongoing," he said, according to the Mehr news agency on Sunday. He did not identify which nuclear site they were planning to damage or when those detained were arrested.

Israel, widely believed to be the region's only nuclear-armed state, sees Iran's atomic work as a military threat and has said it will attack Iran's nuclear sites if it does not end its programme. Iran says its nuclear work is purely peaceful.

Iran accuses Israel and the West of being behind the assassination of Iranian nuclear scientistsand of trying to damage its programme in other ways, such as by cyber attacks.

Credits: timesofindia

N Korea seeks to restart nuclear talks

Country calls for resumption of talks on its nuclear programme, but says there should be no preconditions.

North Korea's senior nuclear strategist has called for a new round of six-nation denuclearisation talks without precondition.

The remarks by Kim Kye Gwan, first vice foreign minister, in Beijing came on Wednesday at a forum marking the 10th anniversary of the talks, which have been stalled since the last round in 2008 broke down over how to verify North Korea was meeting its pledges.

"The DPRK (Democratic People's Republic of Korea/North Korea) supports the six-party talks and any small regional talks within the framework, but we hope the talks have no preconditions, because preconditions lead to mistrust," he told delegates.

"We will make sincere efforts for denuclearisation but it is against the September 19 Joint Statement to let the DPRK take action before restarting the talks."

Kim was referring to an agreement on 19 September 2005, which in part saw the six parties agree to a principle of "action for action" and "words for words".

US officials have rejected holding new discussions before the North makes a clear commitment to carry out earlier promises to disarm, saying holding new talks that go nowhere will only undermine the six-party framework.

South Korea and Japan are also suspicious of such calls.

The other two parties to the talks, Russia and China, have been more supportive of getting the dialogue back on track.

In his speech to the Beijing forum, Wang Yi, Chinese foreign minister, said the parties should seize on a warming trend on the Korean Peninsula to take whatever actions are needed to restart talks.

Since the breakdown in talks, North Korea has escalated tensions with a third nuclear test and missile launch, prompting a tightening of UN sanctions against the isolated communist regime.

Recent months have seen the North take a more moderate line as it sought to restart contacts with South Korea and repair ties with China, its most important ally.

The 10th anniversary forum had been promoted as a way of highlighting the achievements of the negotiations, but there were no immediate signs that it had brought the sides any closer.

The US embassy in Beijing said that it was sending a diplomat to attend only as an observer and that there were no plans to meet any North Korean representatives.

More info:http://www.aljazeera.com