New Delhi, February 26
The Manmohan Singh Government is keeping a close tab on the issue of Iran’s nuclear energy programme which is bound to come centre-stage in international politics next week.
The fate of Iran’s nuclear energy programme would become known on March 6 when the 35-nation Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) meets in Vienna.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who also holds the portfolio of External Affairs Minister, is being given regular updates on the Iran issue by Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran as well as National Security Adviser M K Narayanan.
IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei is to circulate a crucial technical report to the UN nuclear watchdog's board members in a few days from now in advance of the March 6 meeting. The report will be a conclusive account of three years of IAEA investigations into whether Iran’s nuclear energy programme is 100 per cent peaceful or not.
IAEA inspectors have already reached Teheran to check the information recently offered by Iran on its ‘‘Green Salt Project’’, suspected by the West as a shadowy uranium-processing project linked to missile warhead design and tests with high explosives.
A senior IAEA official, Mr Olli Heinonen had conducted an investigation into the Green Salt Project and a summary of his investigations was made available at the IAEA board’s February 2-4 meeting. It was at this meeting that the IAEA Board decided by a 27-3 vote to report the Iranian nuclear file to the Security Council. The Heinonen report said that the Green Salt Project ‘‘could have military-nuclear dimensions’’. Green salt is an intermediate product in the conversion of uranium ore into gas for enrichment into nuclear fuel.
If the IAEA technical report establishes a link between uranium conversion and explosives tests, it would virtually nail Teheran’s ‘‘lies’’ to the international community on the ‘‘peaceful’’ nature of its nuclear energy programme. It would also mean that the ball would then get out of the IAEA court and shift to the Security Council which can, at best, impose economic or political sanctions on Iran or, at worst, can approve military action against Iran.
To avoid the Iran-West standoff escalating into an international crisis, Iran and Russia are engaged in last-ditch efforts through bilateral consultations to reach an amicable solution. The Iranian team has already come back from Moscow after consultations with the Russians on the Russian formula of enriching Iranian uranium on Russian soil and shipping the enriched uranium back to Iran.
The Iran-Russia talks also suit Teheran because as long as the talks are on, there is virtually zero chance of the Security Council recommending sanctions against Iran.
