In Focus : IAEA and Iran http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Focus/IaeaIran/index.shtml
Transcripts
FT Interview 190207
Transcripts of Interviews
Transcript of the Director General´s Interview on Iran and DPRK Financial Times with Daniel Dombey http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Transcripts/2007/ft190207.html
19 February 2007
(See Financial Times)
On Monday, 19 February 2007, the Financial Times talked to Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency ahead of a crucial week in the dispute over Iran´s nuclear programme.
A UN Security Council resolution passed last December calls on Iran to suspend uranium enrichment - which can produce both nuclear fuel and weapons grade material - by Wednesday February 21, the date that Mr. ElBaradei is due to produce a report on Tehran´s compliance with the Security Council´s demands.
On Tuesday he is scheduled to meet Ali Larijani, Iran´s chief nuclear negotiator. Barring a last-minute breakthrough, the dispute will then return to the UN, where the US will push for additional sanctions.
In his 40-minute interview with the FT, Mr. ElBaradei made clear his doubts both about calls for more sanctions and the international community´s emphasis on suspending enrichment. He says that it is far more important to dissuade Iran from pursuing enrichment on an industrial scale - a development that could be a mere six months away - since the country has already acquired considerable technical knowledge from enriching uranium in a "research and development" facility.
Full at: http://www.iaea.org/NewsCenter/Transcripts/2007/ft190207.html