Arab nations yesterday expressed support for efforts by six world powers to pressure Iran to halt potential nuclear-weapon development activities, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, Dec. 16).
(Dec. 17) -
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice discussed Iran’s nuclear program with representatives from Arab nations yesterday (Chris Hondros/Getty Images).
The Arab states voiced their concern about Iran's nuclear program during talks with the five permanent U.N. Security Council member nations and Germany, which have worked to persuade Iran to curb its disputed atomic efforts. Iran defends its nuclear program as a strictly peaceful effort.
"All there expressed their concern about Iran's nuclear policies and its regional ambitions," U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said following the talks at the United Nations. "All participants expressed support for the ongoing work of the U.N. Security Council, the (six powers) and the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) regarding the Iranian nuclear file."
"What really did come through here is that these are countries that have very deep interests in how this issue gets resolved, and they want to continue consultations with the [six powers] on how this is all going to come out," Rice said (Agence France-Presse I/Spacewar.com, Dec. 16).
Rice said the participants did not discuss potential new economic penalties against Iran, the Washington Times reported (Pisik/Slavin, Washington Times, Dec. 17).
When questioned on the possibility of a fourth round of sanctions, Rice said: "There is a concern that there will need to be a way to finally incentivize Iran to make a different choice concerning its nuclear ambitions, but this is not an effort to develop a common strategy," the Associated Press reported.
The Arab nations indicated their desire for regular meetings with the U.N. powers on the nuclear standoff
(Associated Press/Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Dec. 17).
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said his country supports the IAEA investigation of Iran's nuclear ambitions but does not intend to back new punitive measures.
"We will clarify the principles that were agreed upon in the formation of the work on the Iran nuclear program ... to support with all possible means via the Security Council, the U.N. and other channels the work of the IAEA," Lavrov said (AFP I).
Present at the meeting were representatives from Egypt, Iraq and Jordan, plus officials from four members of the Gulf Cooperation Council -- Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. There was no envoy from Oman, while reports differed on whether a Qatari official attended.
"Both sides have been wrangling for a long time," Omani Foreign Minister Yousuf Bin Alawi told the Times. "The time has come to put everything in a correct attitude." He said he would attempt provide mediation for the dispute as he did during the Clinton administration.
Arab states are pursuing a "two-fold" strategy on Iran's nuclear program, said Gary Sick, a Columbia University expert on Iran and the Gulf region.
"On the one hand, they are trying to develop reliable relations with Iran to preclude the sense that they are obvious enemies. At the same time, they are encouraging the United States to take a tough line," he said (Pisik/Slavin, Washington Times).
Meanwhile, Germany yesterday proposed new economic penalties against Iran during high-level talks with Israel, the Jerusalem Post reported (see GSN, Dec. 15). Berlin recently recommended imposing new sanctions that would target Iran's transportation and banking institutions, according to Der Spiegel.
Israel continues to review the suggested sanctions, high-level Foreign Ministry sources said (Herb Keinon, Jerusalem Post, Dec. 17).
In Tehran, Iranian lawmaker Allaeddin Boroujerdi said that Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant would begin operating by March 2010, if not earlier, United Press International reported.
Concerns that the site would not be finished have been eliminated, Boroujerdi said. He added that Iranian nuclear specialists have arrived at the facility after receiving training in Russia, according to Kuwaiti media (United Press International/BreitBart, Dec. 16).
Elsewhere, a U.S. court has sentenced an Iranian-American engineer to 15 months in prison for providing Iran with training software taken from the Arizona nuclear power plant where he worked, Justice Department officials said yesterday.
Prosecutors said that Mohammad Reza Alavi, 51, copied software with details on nuclear reactor operations to his personal computer soon after he resigned from his position at the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station, AFP reported.
Alavi was convicted in May of illegally accessing the computer, and he later confessed to a charge of transporting stolen goods (Agence France-Presse II/Spacewar.com, Dec. 16).