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IntrepidIsMe
Pimp Handed
Joined: 14 Jun 2002
Posts: 13057
Location: New York
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 Thu Jan 12, 2006 5:55 pm Outrage greets Iran nuke decision |
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| Quote: | Outrage greets Iran nuke decision
World running out of patience, says IAEA head
TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- The international community has reacted with outrage to the announcement by Iran that it would resume its nuclear research program, saying Tehran would face consequences if it carried through its plan.
"I am running out of patience, the international community is running out of patience," Mohammed ElBaradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told Sky News.
"The credibility of the verification process is at stake."
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, whose country has joined Britain and France in trying to reach a deal with Iran on its nuclear program, said that there were "very, very ominous signals" from Tehran and that a move by Iran to resume uranium enrichment would violate the agreement it reached with the three countries, known as the EU3.
"That cannot remain without consequences," Steinmeier said.
Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik, whose country currently holds the rotating EU presidency, said Iran's decision to resume nuclear research was "the wrong step in the wrong direction and a cause of very serious concern."
In Washington, U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said an emergency meeting of the IAEA board of governors was possible.
He said the United States had enough votes to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council, but was giving "every possible chance" for talks among Iran, the EU3 and Russia to work.
"But ultimately, given Iran's track record on seeking nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian program, defying the international community, bobbing and weaving, obfuscating, ... we're ultimately all going to end up in the Security Council on this issue," he said.
Earlier in the day, an Iranian government spokesman said Iran was set to resume its nuclear research program.
"Nuclear research will be resumed in Iran today in the presence of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) representatives," Gholam-Hossein Elham said.
"Resumption of research is not subject to legal prohibitions. It was suspended voluntarily."
The announcement came a day after Iran's foreign minister said scientists would remove IAEA seals at some nuclear research and development sites and resume operations under the supervision of the agency.
The research and development facilities were not specified.
A senior U.S. State Department official said the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council in recent days had all warned Iran not to make good on its threat, and to return to the negotiating table with the European Union.
"We have coordinated very closely with the Russians, Chinese, French and British to deliver very similar messages to the Iranians over the past several days," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
At the State Department briefing, McCormack was asked if he believed Iran would actually carry through with its threat: "If you look back at the statements from this regime in particular, they have in fact followed through on what they said that they were going to do."
It would be the second time Iran has removed seals put in place by the IAEA. In August, the country unsealed equipment at its Isfahan plant and resumed uranium conversion activities there.
Officials have said Iran will maintain a suspension at its uranium enrichment plant at Natanz.
Uranium conversion is a first step towards uranium enrichment, which could lead to the manufacture of nuclear weapons.
Iran's hard-line conservative government insists its nuclear programs have peaceful aims, and it has the right to restart nuclear facilities and enrich uranium for the production of nuclear energy.
Other nations, however, including the United States, fear Tehran's true goal is to produce nuclear weapons.
Those fears have only been reinforced by recent comments by Iranian Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who has said Israel should be wiped out.
-- CNN State Department Producer Elise Labott contributed to this report. |
Source: cnn.com
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Republican_Man
STV's Premier Conservative
Joined: 26 Mar 2004
Posts: 14823
Location: Classified
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| Thu Jan 12, 2006 6:14 pm |
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| Quote: | Rice Calls for U.N. Action Against Iran
WASHINGTON � Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice demanded on Thursday that the United Nations take action against Iran's "dangerous defiance" in restarting its nuclear program.
"I don't think it serves anybody's purpose to have a nuclear-armed Iran," Rice said at a briefing in at the State Department.
"I would hope that now seeing the very powerful reaction of the international community that Iran would take a step back and look at the isolation it is about to experience," Rice said.
Rice did not say whether the United States has the votes needed in the U.N. Security Council to punish Iran formally. But Rice added that enough support has been shown for the International Atomic Energy Agency, which oversees nuclear activity, to ask the council to review the issue.
"The council should call for the Iranian regime to step away" from nuclear-weapons development, Rice said at a briefing in Washington. "It is very clear that everyone believes a very important threshold has been cleared."
Rice called for Tehran to end its nuclear program, saying she was "gravely concerned" at "its dangerous defiance of the entire international community."
Iran has claimed its nuclear program was not designed to produce weapons but Rice rejected that, saying, "I don't think anybody believes Iran's protestations that this is a peaceful program."
The Bush administration has urged Iran to resume negotiations with the European Union. Rice said she was hopeful that there is a diplomatic way to resolve the issue and did not discuss specific action that could be taken against Iran.
"We are not yet ready to talk about specific measures" to take against Iran, Rice said. "We have to look hard at how a strong message is sent."
Rice's comments Thursday were unusual as she rarely briefs reporters when she is at the State Department. The Bush administration generally refers comment on the issue to the EU-3, a group of British, French and German officials coordinating discussions with Iran.
The European Foreign Ministers met in Berlin on Thursday and issued a statement urging the U.N. Security Council to take up the matter. They agreed the issue should be referred to the council by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Asked Thursday whether the U.S. military would take action if Iran fails to act to take out nuclear facilities, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld declined to answer.
"I don't think my discussing that subject is useful," Rumsfeld said.
Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns plans to go to Britain, France and Germany next week to coordinate strategy while Undersecretary of State Robert Joseph will travel to Vienna, the headquarters of the U.N. monitoring agency. Burns also will hold talks in India, said a senior U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the State Department was not ready to issue a formal statement.
The Security Council could try to punish Iran with economic or political sanctions on the grounds it is proceeding secretly to develop nuclear weapons. The immediate objective is to force a resumption of the negotiations and such a plan could backfire if China and Russia want to veto the measures against their ally.
The Council imposed blanket sanctions on Iraq after its 1990 invasion of Kuwait. In the case of Iran, it could start with a demand that Iran negotiate to end its program, and ratchet it up from there.
But plans for Iran are not touching on the approach taken toward Saddam Hussein's Iraq in 2003. "The situations are very, very different," she said.
Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has vowed to press ahead with a nuclear program that Iran says is designed to produce civilian energy in one of the oil-richest countries in the world.
"Unfortunately, a group of bullies allows itself to deprive nations of their legal and natural rights," he said Wednesday. "I tell those superpowers that, with strength and prudence, Iran will pave the way to achieving peaceful nuclear energy."
While Burns and Joseph will be consulting in Europe, the European Union's foreign minister, Javier Solana, plans to be in Washington to coordinate with Bush administration officials.
FOX News' Teri Schultz and Bret Baier and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source |
Yeah...it's looking pretty bad. I wonder what's going to happen next.
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"Rights are only as good as the willingness of some to exercise responsibility for those rights- Fmr. Colorado Senate Pres. John Andrews
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webtaz99
Commodore
Joined: 13 Nov 2003
Posts: 1229
Location: The Other Side
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| Thu Jan 12, 2006 7:38 pm |
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It has been my opinion for years that some day, tactical nukes will be used to prevent proliferation. Hopefully I will be wrong, and some kind of new, non-nuclear solution will be used.
There are many ways to build nuclear reactors that will not be able to produce plutonium or U-238 (needed for nuclear bombs). If Iran is truthful about wanting to produce nuclear energy but not nuclear bomb, they should adopt a different reactor design.
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"History is made at night! Character is who you are in the dark." (Lord John Whorfin)
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Republican_Man
STV's Premier Conservative
Joined: 26 Mar 2004
Posts: 14823
Location: Classified
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| Fri Jan 13, 2006 2:07 pm |
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| Quote: | Bush: Iran Poses a Grave Threat
WASHINGTON � President Bush and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday said Iran's nuclear weapons program "poses a grave threat to the security of the world" and called on it to back off its pursuit of the program.
"Iran armed with a nuclear weapon poses a grave threat to the security of the world," Bush said during a press briefing with Merkel.
Bush said he is not going to pre-judge how the United Nations Security Council will respond to the situation, but is preparing a strategy with allies.
Germany is a "valued ally" and the relationship between the two countries will be important in dealing with Iran and other issues, Bush said.
The United States, Germany and other nations need to "send a common message to the Iranians ... to not have a nuclear weapon to blackmail or threaten the world," Bush said.
Merkel said it is important to "persuade as many countries as possible to ally themselves with us" in showing opposition to Iran's nuclear weapons program.
"It is totally unacceptable about what Iran has said recently," Merkel said.
Bush told reporters in the East Room of the White House that they spent time talking about the issue and their shared desire to solve it diplomatically.
"We've got a lot in common," Bush said. "There's a lot of issues in the work that require our intense cooperation and desire to work together."
But Bush rejected a suggestion by Merkel that the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, be shut down.
The camp on the U.S. Navy base there is "a necessary part of protecting the American people," Bush said. Merkel said she raised the issue with Bush, and she described it as one of the differences between the United States and Germany.
"There sometimes have been differences of opinion, I mentioned Guantanamo in this respect," Merkel said.
Merkel has expressed criticism of the facility. Germany rebuffed an appeal by Attorney General Alberto Gonzales not to release a terrorist accused of killing a Navy diver in an airplane hijacking in 1985.
Merkel, recently elected to office in November, marked her first visit to the United States in an effort to improve her country's relations. She took power last November after an extremely close and protracted race with former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.
The meeting with Bush follows a decision by European allies to demand answers from Iran about its nuclear weapons program.
On Thursday, Germany joined the United States, Britain and France in calling for the United Nations to look into Iran�s nuclear program.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice demanded on Thursday that the U.N. Security Council review Iran�s �dangerous defiance.�
"I don't think it serves anybody's purpose to have a nuclear-armed Iran," Rice said.
Rice did not say whether the United States has the votes needed in the U.N. Security Council to punish Iran formally. But Rice added that enough support has been shown for the International Atomic Energy Agency, which oversees nuclear activity, to ask the council to review the issue.
During her visit, Merkel will also meet with members of Congress and attend a ceremony at the newly renovated headquarters of the German Marshall Fund of the United States.
On Monday Merkel was due to fly to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Iran was likely to be on the agenda, along with Russia's conflict with Ukraine over shipping natural gas to Europe.
FOX News' Carl Cameron and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source |
A Fox News report just now talked about a mutual affection between Germany's chancellor and the President, which isn't unimportant.
Now, with Iran, unlike Iraq, it looks like we have the support of Germany, the UK, and France. But of course action from those countries (military action) wouldn't occur until and unless the US leads in it, so we'll see.
I hope it doesn't come to military operations, but it looks like diplomacy is no longer an issue. The problem now is how to deal with Iran.
-------signature-------
"Rights are only as good as the willingness of some to exercise responsibility for those rights- Fmr. Colorado Senate Pres. John Andrews
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Cathexis
The Angel of Avalon
Joined: 26 Dec 2001
Posts: 5901
Location: ~~ Where Dreams Have No End�
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| Fri Jan 13, 2006 6:28 pm |
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| Republican_Man wrote: | | Quote: | Bush: Iran Poses a Grave Threat
WASHINGTON � President Bush and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday said Iran's nuclear weapons program "poses a grave threat to the security of the world" and called on it to back off its pursuit of the program.
"Iran armed with a nuclear weapon poses a grave threat to the security of the world," Bush said during a press briefing with Merkel.
Bush said he is not going to pre-judge how the United Nations Security Council will respond to the situation, but is preparing a strategy with allies.
Germany is a "valued ally" and the relationship between the two countries will be important in dealing with Iran and other issues, Bush said.
The United States, Germany and other nations need to "send a common message to the Iranians ... to not have a nuclear weapon to blackmail or threaten the world," Bush said.
Merkel said it is important to "persuade as many countries as possible to ally themselves with us" in showing opposition to Iran's nuclear weapons program.
"It is totally unacceptable about what Iran has said recently," Merkel said.
Bush told reporters in the East Room of the White House that they spent time talking about the issue and their shared desire to solve it diplomatically.
"We've got a lot in common," Bush said. "There's a lot of issues in the work that require our intense cooperation and desire to work together."
But Bush rejected a suggestion by Merkel that the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, be shut down.
The camp on the U.S. Navy base there is "a necessary part of protecting the American people," Bush said. Merkel said she raised the issue with Bush, and she described it as one of the differences between the United States and Germany.
"There sometimes have been differences of opinion, I mentioned Guantanamo in this respect," Merkel said.
Merkel has expressed criticism of the facility. Germany rebuffed an appeal by Attorney General Alberto Gonzales not to release a terrorist accused of killing a Navy diver in an airplane hijacking in 1985.
Merkel, recently elected to office in November, marked her first visit to the United States in an effort to improve her country's relations. She took power last November after an extremely close and protracted race with former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.
The meeting with Bush follows a decision by European allies to demand answers from Iran about its nuclear weapons program.
On Thursday, Germany joined the United States, Britain and France in calling for the United Nations to look into Iran�s nuclear program.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice demanded on Thursday that the U.N. Security Council review Iran�s �dangerous defiance.�
"I don't think it serves anybody's purpose to have a nuclear-armed Iran," Rice said.
Rice did not say whether the United States has the votes needed in the U.N. Security Council to punish Iran formally. But Rice added that enough support has been shown for the International Atomic Energy Agency, which oversees nuclear activity, to ask the council to review the issue.
During her visit, Merkel will also meet with members of Congress and attend a ceremony at the newly renovated headquarters of the German Marshall Fund of the United States.
On Monday Merkel was due to fly to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Iran was likely to be on the agenda, along with Russia's conflict with Ukraine over shipping natural gas to Europe.
FOX News' Carl Cameron and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source |
A Fox News report just now talked about a mutual affection between Germany's chancellor and the President, which isn't unimportant.
Now, with Iran, unlike Iraq, it looks like we have the support of Germany, the UK, and France. But of course action from those countries (military action) wouldn't occur until and unless the US leads in it, so we'll see.
I hope it doesn't come to military operations, but it looks like diplomacy is no longer an issue. The problem now is how to deal with Iran. |
I am extraordinarily disturbed by Iran's "dangerous defiance" and I'm sure that no good can ever come from such a country's involvement in that type of research.
On the bright side, I'm ECSTATIC to know that the U.S. and France (along with Britain and Germany) are on the same page with this. It seems to me that these two countries have been on unsure ground with each other when it comes to taking military action. I know that Chirac did not back the Iraq War, so this is a step in a most positive direction as far as American-French relations are concerned!
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Republican_Man
STV's Premier Conservative
Joined: 26 Mar 2004
Posts: 14823
Location: Classified
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| Fri Jan 13, 2006 6:38 pm |
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Well, I'm not so sure that when action is required, France and Germany--as well as Russia, and China--will support it, whether it be military, sanctions, or otherwise.
And this still doesn't make me think any better of Chirac, though, but it does show a more positive outlook for the near-future.
-------signature-------
"Rights are only as good as the willingness of some to exercise responsibility for those rights- Fmr. Colorado Senate Pres. John Andrews
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Lord Borg
Fleet Admiral
Joined: 27 May 2003
Posts: 11214
Location: Vulcan Capital City, Vulcan
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| Fri Jan 13, 2006 8:24 pm |
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Well, Looks like troops will be going into Iran next
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