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Iran says will respond to IAEA `before or after` deadline
Tehran, Sept 21: Iran reserves the right to respond to an ultimatum from the UN`s nuclear watchdog `before or after` an October 31 deadline for Tehran to come clean on its atomic programme, the foreign ministry said today.
Tehran, Sept 21: Iran reserves the right to respond to an ultimatum from the UN's nuclear watchdog "before or after" an October 31 deadline for Tehran to come clean on its atomic programme, the foreign ministry said today.
"We still have time before the 31st of October. We will respond when it will be necessary, before or after the 31st of October," foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters here.
"The resolution is being examined by the concerned officials and this examination is not yet finished," he said. "When it is complete, we will say so and give our response to the agency, and we will give our clear and definitive position," he said, adding that formulating a response to the agency was "complex and very delicate".
A week ago, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) gave Iran until the end of October to clear up widespread suspicions that it is using an atomic energy programme as a cover for nuclear weapons development.
The resolution, passed by the IAEA's board of governors after intensive us lobbying, demands Iran answer all the agency's questions regarding its enrichment activities, provide unrestricted access to UN inspectors and a detailed list of its nuclear-related imports. Iran fiercely denies it is seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, but its failure to comply could lead to Iran being declared in non-compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), with the matter being passed to the UN Security Council.
Bureau Report
"The resolution is being examined by the concerned officials and this examination is not yet finished," he said. "When it is complete, we will say so and give our response to the agency, and we will give our clear and definitive position," he said, adding that formulating a response to the agency was "complex and very delicate".
A week ago, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) gave Iran until the end of October to clear up widespread suspicions that it is using an atomic energy programme as a cover for nuclear weapons development.
The resolution, passed by the IAEA's board of governors after intensive us lobbying, demands Iran answer all the agency's questions regarding its enrichment activities, provide unrestricted access to UN inspectors and a detailed list of its nuclear-related imports. Iran fiercely denies it is seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, but its failure to comply could lead to Iran being declared in non-compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), with the matter being passed to the UN Security Council.
Bureau Report