Iran signed an agreement on Thursday allowing the UN nuclear watchdog to conduct snap inspections across its territory, which Tehran said should prove it is not secretly developing atomic weapons.
The signature to the Additional Protocol to the 1968 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) comes nearly 18 months after an exiled Iranian opposition group sparked an international crisis by saying Tehran was hiding several large nuclear facilities. The allegations proved to be true.
Iran's outgoing ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Ali Akbar Salehi, signed the document for Tehran, which he said was clear proof his nation wanted to open every inch of its nuclear program to international scrutiny.
He told reporters at the IAEA headquarters in Vienna that Iran would "not leave any stone unturned to reveal its full transparency and establish the confidence that is needed."
In a clear jab at Washington, which accuses Iran of secretly developing an atom bomb, Salehi said: "I ardently hope the new age is set and my country shall no more be subject to unfair and politically motivated accusations and allegations."
IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei, who signed the document on behalf of the UN agency, said Iran's signature would help boost confidence that its nuclear ambitions were peaceful. But he urged Tehran to ratify the protocol as soon as possible.
"I was assured that Iran, until the protocol is ratified, will act as if the protocol is in force," ElBaradei said.
The US has labelled Iran part of an "axis of evil" and says it is using its atomic energy program as a smokescreen to develop nuclear arms. Tehran denies this.
"It's welcome that Iran has made this commitment but what's important to remember is that it is only a first step," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said in Washington, saying Tehran needed to ratify the protocol and carry it out.
"The signature alone doesn't implement the promises. It doesn't suspend the enrichment program, and it doesn't fully satisfy the international community that Iran is not going to carry out activities relating to nuclear weapons," he said.
Russia, which has annoyed Washington by forging ahead with plans to build Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant, praised Tehran for signing the protocol.
"We welcome this responsible step from the Iranian government, evidence of Tehran's intention to consistently move along the path of ensuring complete transparency of its nuclear program," a Russian foreign ministry official told Interfax.
A museum in southern French city Marseille is inviting visitors to discover Europe’s relationship to the naturist lifestyle by wandering its halls in the nude. “It’s not every day you get to walk around a museum naked,” said Julie Guegnolle, 38, who was celebrating her birthday at the “Naturist Paradises” exhibition in the Museum of Civilizations of Europe and the Mediterranean (Mucem). Once a month, visitors to Mucem can explore the history of naturism in Europe in only their shoes — a precaution not for modesty’s sake but simply to “avoid getting splinters,” said Eric Stefanut, head of French naturist organization
SOVEREIGNTY ‘VIOLATION’: China was possibly probing Japan’s air defense network, seeking to obtain intelligence and putting pressure on Tokyo, analysts said Japan yesterday criticized what it called the first confirmed incursion by a Chinese military aircraft into its airspace as a “serious violation” of its sovereignty, saying Beijing was becoming “increasingly active.” China’s growing economic and military clout in the Asia-Pacific region and its assertiveness in territorial disputes — mostly with the Philippines — has rattled the US and its allies, and Monday’s incident represents a further heightening of tensions. Japan, Washington’s closest ally in the region, said it scrambled fighter jets after the two-minute incursion from 11:29am on Monday by the Y-9 surveillance aircraft off the Danjo Islands in the East China
APP ACCUSATIONS: Investigators said they were surprised Durov would fly to Paris, knowing he was wanted for failing to curb the criminal use of his platform Telegram CEO Pavel Durov was yesterday expected to appear in court after being arrested by French police at an airport near Paris for alleged offenses related to his popular messaging app, sources said. The 39-year-old Franco-Russian billionaire was detained at Le Bourget airport north of the French capital on Saturday evening, one of the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Durov had arrived from Baku, Azerbaijan, another source close to the case said. The Russian embassy in Paris yesterday said French authorities were “refusing to cooperate” after Durov’s arrest. “We immediately asked French authorities to explain the reasons for this detention and demanded
UNDERBUDGETED: UN head has called for more funding for the support mission as only about one-fourth of pledged amount has been received Two months after the first Kenyan police officers arrived in Haiti, little progress has been made against the country’s rapacious gangs — and the buildup of an international policing mission appears stalled. With UN backing and funding from the US, the mission was supposed to bring order to a nation where armed groups control 80 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince. However, the Kenyan police — now numbering 400 — and their Haitian counterparts have not recaptured any gang strongholds, with frustration palpable among city residents. “The abuse from the gangs continues, and the bandits aren’t even worried,” motorcycle-taxi driver Watson