New Report Cites Traces of Uranium at Iran Plant

Tuesday, August 26, 2003

By Felicity Barringer

New York Times Writer

In a report in the current issue of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, Ms. Hinderstein and Mr. Albright wrote, "Worries about Iranian nuclear activities were heightened in early July after Iran conducted a successful test of the Shahab-3 missile, which can carry a 2,200-pound payload as far as 1,500 kilometers. The timing of Iran's announcement about the Shahab-3 and the size of its payload suggest that the missile is intended to carry a nuclear warhead."

UNITED NATIONS -- NYT
International inspectors have found traces of highly enriched uranium at an Iranian facility, according to a new confidential report distributed today. The traces could be an indication that Tehran has already produced weapons-grade nuclear materials.

Iran denied producing nuclear materials, said the report, by the International Atomic Energy Association, the conclusions of which were obtained by The New York Times. The report added, "Additional work is also required to enable the agency to arrive at conclusions about Iran's statements that there have been no uranium enrichment activities in Iran involving nuclear material."

The Iranians, the report said, explained that the trace particles found by inspectors at the Natanz uranium enrichment plant had been on the equipment when it was purchased from another country.

The report added that "Iran has agreed to provide the agency with all information about the centrifuge components and other contaminated equipment it obtained from abroad, including their origin and the locations where they have been stored and used in Iran."

John Bolton, the under secretary of state for arms control and international security, was in Moscow and Paris this week to discuss Iran, as well as the continuing standoff over North Korea's nuclear program. Philip T. Reeker, a spokesman for the State Department, said, "We have real concerns about this, and it's part of our broad dialogue with Russia on many things."

The next meeting of the agency's board of governors is scheduled to begin Sept. 8. At their most recent meetings the members of the board decided to press Iran both to sign an additional protocol and to provide the inspectors with additional information and access and allow them to test Tehran's claim that its program is a purely civilian effort to increase the country's energy capacity. Iraq has one nuclear reactor under construction at Bushehr being built and supplied by a Russian company.
(More: NYTimes.com)
2003 © The New York Times Company.

Dan