Iran Cautions World Against Israeli Nuclear Arms

Speaking in the meeting of the third Preparatory Committee for the 2005 NPT Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons which was held Tuesday in New York, he pointed out that since 1974 when Iran proposed the idea of a Middle East free of nuclear arms, all regional countries have done their best to materialize it.

He further regretted that contrary to what was expected by non-nuclear countries, the collapse of the Soviet Union and end of the cold war did not bring about revisions in nuclear doctrines but rather some nuclear countries are seemingly relying on nuclear arms so heavily that they see no need to eliminate such armaments.

Khoshroo added that lack of security of non-nuclear countries in the face of use or threat of use of nuclear arms by their owners has been a source of concern since the very beginning of compiling of the NPT.

Saying that Iran for years had been denied one of its most basic rights to develop peaceful nuclear energy, he noted that Iran has pooled its capabilities and resources through many years in this field while being careful to definitely abide by its commitments and not to neglect the peaceful nature of such activities.

He went on to express his delight that one-year long very precise inspections of Iran's nuclear activities by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have proved that Iran never neglected the peaceful purposes of its nuclear activities which, he expressed confidence, would lead to world acknowledgement of peaceful nature of its nuclear activities and programs.

Commenting on the remarks of US representative in the present meeting who levelled certain accusations against Iran, Khoshroo stressed that America lacked the credibility to comment on the degree of the commitment of countries to the NPT because it has repeatedly ignored the agreements of international circles regarding the disarmament issues.

He believed the US should first of all provide convincing explanations to the international community on its own nuclear activities and also its policy of expanding fresh atomic arms.

The deputy foreign minister further referred to US active support for the Israel's nuclear programs as a dark record which jeopardizes all international efforts to monitor and check the Zionists' atomic activities.

He stated that the US pursued particular goals by initiating a ballyhoo over Iran's nuclear activities.

The IAEA report in 2003 clearly pointed out that no evidence was available to show that Iran's atomic program were aimed at developing nuclear arms, he added. Iran Has No More Nuclear Secrets to Reveal

Iran's ambassador to the United Nations in Vienna said on Wednesday Tehran has no more secrets to reveal to the UN nuclear watchdog and dismissed accusations it has a covert atom bomb program as baseless.

Asked if this declaration would contain any further surprise revelations of sensitive nuclear research that might generate controversy, Iran's UN ambassador Pirooz Hosseini said: "No". "We have told the IAEA that we are committed to our commitments," Hosseini told Reuters. "We will hand in the declaration as agreed...We are doing our utmost to cooperate with the IAEA."

Last month, Vienna diplomats said "Western" intelligence agencies had passed on intelligence to the IAEA supporting another exile allegation -- that Tehran has a secret uranium enrichment program that could produce material for bombs and running parallel to its declared enrichment program.

"These are baseless allegations. It is an attempt to disturb our very fruitful cooperation with the IAEA," Hosseini said.

In June, the IAEA Board of Governors will meet again to discuss the agency's inspections of Iran's nuclear program. Tehran says the program is dedicated to the peaceful generation of electricity.

Hosseini said that after the June meeting, Iran wants to be off the agenda of the IAEA board as a special case. He said that people in Tehran were growing increasingly impatient with the IAEA's treatment of the Islamic republic. "We are doing our job. We should not be on the agenda of the IAEA board as a special case. We are like every other IAEA member," he said. "People in Iran are asking why we are on the agenda as a special case when we are cooperating in such a vast area?" ElBaradei to Visit Israel in July

Chief UN nuclear inspector Mohamed ElBaradei will in July visit Israel, which has refused to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and is believed to have up to 200 nuclear weapons, to promote a "nuclear weapon-free zone" in the Middle East.

Gabriella Gafni, Israel's ambassador to the IAEA which ElBaradei heads, told AFP the visit was on for July but said the agenda has not yet been set. IAEA spokeswoman Melissa Fleming said it would be ElBaradei's first trip to Israel in six years and that he would be carrying out his mandate from the 137-member agency "to promote non-proliferation and a nuclear weapon-free zone in the Middle East."

Diplomats close to the IAEA said the visit would be in the first half of July.

ElBaradei's trip will follow the release from prison this month of Israeli nuclear whistle-blower Mordechai Vanunu.

The one-time technician at the Dimona nuclear plant in southern Israel was jailed in 1986 after leaking details of the plant to a British newspaper.

Vanunu has become a hero of the anti-nuclear movement and says Israel should rid itself of nuclear weapons and open up Dimona to international inspection.

Israel is a member of the IAEA but not a signatory to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which the IAEA is mandated to enforce. Israel is thus not a subject of IAEA surveillance and verification.

Arab countries that are members of the IAEA have complained that Israel's alleged nuclear weapons program is not being investigated, at a time when countries like Iran are under intense scrutiny from the UN agency.

ElBaradei said in an interview in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz in December that Israel should give up its nuclear arsenal.

He called for discussions to be engaged between Israel and its regional neighbours in order to establish a de-nuclearized zone and avoid further development of weapons of mass destruction.

"My fear is that without such a dialogue, there will be continued incentive for the region's countries to develop weapons of mass destruction to match the Israeli arsenal," ElBaradei told the liberal Israeli daily.

Gafni reiterated that Israel's policy was to "neither deny nor confirm" that it has nuclear weapons.

She said this policy would "not change in the very near future".

Israel has never acknowledged having a nuclear arsenal but foreign experts believe it has produced between 100 and 200 nuclear warheads.

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