IAEA Said To Agree On Critical Iran Report

IAEA director-general Muhammad el-Baradei 17 June 2004 -- News agencies are reporting that the governing board of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) agreed today on a draft resolution critical of Iran's cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog.
The reported agreement would follow days of wrangling among IAEA governors over the wording of the text.

The reports say the document drafted by the United Kingdom, France, and Germany has now been formally submitted and is expected to be passed by the IAEA tomorrow.

The text reportedly calls for stepped-up IAEA investigations into Iran's nuclear program and for Iran to do more to help complete the probe.

The United States has accused Iran of secretly developing nuclear weapons. But Iran says its nuclear program is solely for generating electricity.

Iran's chief delegate to the IAEA meeting, Hossein Musavian, said he has not seen the draft, but he added that "Iran would continue cooperation with the IAEA." Iran previously had warned it will not accept a critical resolution.

(Reuters/dpa/AP/AFP)