Iran delays reprisal

Iranian energy commission spokesman Emad Hosseini said the plan by Iranian lawmakers to fast-track a bill through parliament on Sunday to choke off oil exports to Europe has been put off until next Friday.

The delay he announced coincides with a rare visit to Tehran by six inspectors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for talks with top Iran nuclear officials. For 15 years Iran has denied developing a covert nuclear weapons program as alleged by Western nations, notably the United States.

Hosseini told the semi-official Mehr news agency that there was no bill on banning oil exports to Europe yet, just an "idea by lawmakers" that still had to be studied by the energy commission.

"No bill has been designed nor has it come to parliament," he said.

Westerwelle says EU resolute

Eighteen percent of Iranian oil exports go to EU countries, mainly to Italy, Spain and Greece. The EU embargo enacted on January 16 applies in phases. It banned new import contracts but gave those three EU nations until July to find alternative suppliers.

On Sunday, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle told the newspaper Welt am Sonntag that the EU was resolute that it would prevent Iran from "acquiring an atomic weapon."

"We will find ways in the EU to compensate for [Iranian] delivery stoppages," said Westerwelle.

Saudi Arabia has said it could make up for shortfalls, but that could be complicated by repeated Iranian threats to close the Gulf region's export channel, the Strait of Hormuz. The United States, which has two aircraft carrier groups in the region, has warned Iran via diplomatic channels not to cross a "red line," according to the New York Times.

IAEA discreet in Tehran

Amid the Iranian and Western threats and counter-threats, the arrival of the IAEA team in Tehran, headed by the UN agency's Chief Inspector Herman Nackaerts, has been low key.

At Tehran's airport, the six inspectors avoided contact with reporters and left for the capital through a rear exit. Nackaerts is due to meet Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saedi Jalili and atomic chief Feredoun Abbasi.

But it was unclear whether the team would also inspect nuclear sites such as Fordo, located 160 kilometers south of Tehran. The new uranium enrichment facility is due to become operational next month, with the capability of enriching uranium to 20-percent purity. Ninety percent is needed for a nuclear bomb.

'Nothing to hide'

Iran's foreign minister Ali-Akbar Salehi, who is visiting Ethiopia to attend an African Union summit, told the semi-official Iranian news agency ISNA that he was "very optimistic" about the IAEA visit. Iran, he said, had "nothing to hide."

On Friday, IAEA chief Yukiya Amano told the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that his agency has "information that indicates that Iran has engaged in activities relevant to the development of a nuclear explosive device."

Amano called on Iran to show "substantial cooperation."

Author: Ian P. Johnson (dpa, AP, AFP, Reuters)
Editor: Nicole Goebel