Iran says EU talks go on, no uranium enrichment

Yahoo News:

By Parisa Hafezi

July 31, 2005

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran set a Sunday deadline for the EU to submit proposals on a dispute over the Islamic Republic's nuclear program, but said it would continue talks with the bloc and would not resume uranium enrichment.

It said it would restart limited uranium conversion if the European Union did not come up with the proposals by 5 p.m. (1230 GMT).

The EU -- represented by Britain, France and Germany -- is due to offer Iran a limited package of economic and political incentives to give up work that the United States suspects is a veil for efforts to build a nuclear bomb.

In return, the EU wants Iran to agree to maintain indefinitely a suspension of uranium enrichment, nuclear fuel reprocessing and related activities.

Iran has said the parties originally agreed on an Aug. 1 deadline for submission of the proposals, but that ambassadors for the EU's so-called "Big Three" had asked for this to be extended by six days. Tehran said it rejected any delay.

"We will continue our talks with the EU. Iran will not resume uranium enrichment," Ali Aghamohammadi, a spokesman for the Supreme National Security Council, told Reuters.

"The Europeans have until 1700 today to submit their proposals."

If the EU did not submit its proposals the "only activity we will resume is to lift part of the uranium conversion facility at Isfahan and it will be only limited activities," he said.

DESERT ORE

The plant in the central city of Isfahan takes processed uranium ore, mined in Iran's central desert, and turns it into uranium hexafluoride gas. This gas can be pumped into centrifuges that spin at supersonic speed to enrich the uranium.

It was not clear whether Iran, which says its nuclear program is only for power generation, was using a tough stance over a matter of a few days to put pressure on the EU.

Diplomats in the EU's "Big Three" countries said they were not aware the bloc had committed itself firmly to Aug. 1.

They said there had been an agreement at talks with Iran in Geneva last May that the EU would submit proposals by the end of July or "early August."

Waiting until Aug. 7 would allow the EU to present its offer after the inauguration of Iran's new president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, on Aug. 3.

Regardless of the date, diplomats have expressed little optimism a deal can be done. EU diplomats say the European offer is predicated on Iran agreeing to maintain indefinitely its suspension of uranium enrichment, nuclear fuel reprocessing and related activities.

If it does not do so, they have threatened to back U.S. demands to report Iran to the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions.

Analysts are uncertain what effect a new president will have on the dispute over Iran's nuclear program but suggest negotiators take their orders directly from Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, bypassing the government.