Iran has failed to report certain nuclear activities but is taking corrective action, the UN's chief nuclear inspector said Monday.
The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Mohamed ElBaradei, also urged Iran to ink an "additional protocol" to the global nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) that would allow the IAEA to inspect all suspected nuclear sites, not just those declared by Tehran.
ElBaradei was presenting a report to the IAEA board of governors on the implementation of the NPT safeguards agreement in Iran, AFP reported.
"The report points out that Iran has failed to report certain nuclear material and activities and that corrective actions are being taken in cooperation with Iranian authorities," he told a meeting in Vienna on Monday.
"The report also explains that work is still ongoing with regard to the correctness and completeness of Iran's declaration to ensure that all nuclear material in Iran has been declared and is under safeguards," ElBaradei quotde as saying.
"(Iran should) conclude and bring into force an additional protocol at an early date in order to enhance the Agency's ability to provide credible assurances regarding the peaceful nature of its nuclear activities," he said.
"(We are) continuing our efforts, through technical discussions, inspection and environmental sample analysis, to understand all aspects of Iran's nuclear program, including the research and development work relevant to its uranium conversion and enrichment program and its programme for the use of heavy water."
On its part, Iran reiterated its refusal to sign an additional protocol. Foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said the Islamic republic would hold out on allowing additional inspections as long as other signatories to the NPT did not fulfil their treaty obligations related to the transfer of peaceful nuclear technology.
On Sunday, Iran's Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi said that Iran has no nuclear arms program. In a meeting with special advisor to the Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Okamoto, Kharrazi said that the Islamic Republic is against nuclear arms in line with the Islamic ethics.
Kharrazi said Iran has put all its nuclear program under supervision of the IAEA and has no undeclared atomic program. (Albawaba.com)
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