EU and US Clash on Iran Nuclear Question
November 18, 2003
Just as the ministers showed the first tentative signs of reconciliation after the dispute over the U.S.-led war in Iraq, the next can of worms popped open and out sprang Iran. The issue of Iran's nuclear program took center stage at the foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels, as U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said the EU wasn't being tough enough with Teheran, which Washington suspects of trying to develop atomic weapons.
Powell made the comments after talks with EU foreign ministers on Tuesday in Brussels, where the U.S. Secretary of State and his European counterparts had come together in the hopes of putting their acrimonious divisions over Iraq behind them.
After what Power described as "very candid discussions" with his EU counterparts, he told a news conference that the wording of a document put forward by Britain, France and Germany was not strong enough when it comes to Iran's non-compliance with its nuclear proliferation treaty obligations.
Powell said Iran seemed to be moving in the right direction in cooperating with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, but that the U.S. had reservations about a draft resolution put forward by the three major EU powers.
"We'll be in discussion with our EU colleagues and other members of the IAEA as to whether or not the resolution is strong enough to convey to the world the difficulties we've had with Iran over the years," Powell told reporters.
Nuclear weapons in Iran?
The U.S. says Iran's past actions regarding inspections of its nuclear program -- Iran admits to having failed to disclose uranium enrichment activities and plants -- indicates it is working towards developing nuclear arms. American officials say they want the IAEA to find Iran in breach of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty and possibly impose sanctions through the U.N. Security Council.
Iran denies that it is working on developing nuclear weapons, insisting its program is geared solely toward power generation and is civilian in nature.
Tuesday's difference of opinion was foreshadowed on Monday, when Javier Solana, the EU's foreign policy chief, said that Teheran had been forthcoming with the IAEA's investigation. He made the remarks after meeting with the head of Iran's National Security Council, Hasan Rowhani, who said Iran would sign another protocol from the IAEA which would authorize more checks of its nuclear program.
"We have achieved agreements with them, we hope that they will comply with those agreements," Solana said. "I think that... they have been honest."
"I wouldn't have gone that far," Powell said on Monday after hearing Solana's comments.
Time to make up
Powell spent one day in Brussels before leaving to join President George W. Bush in London, where he is beginning a state visit. At the start of the EU meeting, Powell stressed the common ground that Europe and the U.S. share.
"Time and again, the values and interests that bind Europe and America have proven stronger than the issues that from time to time divide us," Powell said in a ceremony before the meeting, where he unveiled a plaque commemorating 50 years of diplomatic representation to the EU and its forerunners.
The was a mood of conciliation in the air after the month of bitter division over Iraq. Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel, whose country was one of the fiercest opponents of the U.S.-led military action, said it was time for cooperation.