Inspectors from the United Nations nuclear watchdog conducted a
five-hour visit to Iran's heavy-water reactor site at Arak
yesterday, the official IRNA news agency said, the first such visit
there since April.
Iran agreed on July 24 to let inspectors from the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) visit the complex early this week, as
part of a UN push for more transparency in Iran's disputed nuclear
program.
Four months ago Iran cut off IAEA access to Arak, southwest of
the capital Teheran, to protest at UN sanctions against Teheran
over its refusal to halt atomic work Western powers suspect is
aimed at making nuclear bombs. Iran denies the charge.
IRNA, which quoted what it described as an informed source, did
not provide further details about the visit. IAEA officials in
Vienna had no immediate comment. "Inspectors from the International
Atomic Energy Agency visited Arak's 40 megawatt research reactor on
Monday," IRNA quoted its source as saying.
Western diplomats say Iran is showing signs of cooperation with
the Vienna-based agency to head off broader, more painful UN
sanctions.
The Arak complex is under construction and due for completion in
2009.
Inspectors want to check that Iran is adhering to design data
for the reactor given earlier to the IAEA. Diplomats say the risk
of Iran using the reactor to yield bomb-grade plutonium would rise
in the absence of UN monitoring.
Iran says its nuclear program, centered on a new uranium
enrichment plant in Natanz, is meant to generate electricity so it
can export more of its oil wealth - not bombs as Western powers
suspect after years of Iranian secrecy and evasions.
But it has been slapped with two sets of sanctions for defying
repeated UN resolutions demanding it suspend all nuclear fuel
activity, including the Arak project.
European diplomats said earlier this month Western powers had
quietly shelved steps to toughen penalties against Iran until
September to see whether the IAEA negotiations would bring an end
to Iranian obstruction of UN inquiries since 2003.
(China Daily via agencies July 31, 2007)
