IAEA delegation to Iran for nuclear talks

A delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) arrived in Iran's capital Tehran on the morning of February 13 to hold new talks on the country's controversial nuclear program, the Isna news agency reported.

Speaking to reporters at the airport in Vienna (Austria) before leaving for Tehran, IAEA chief Herman Nackaerts said the agency would try to resolve differences with Iran in negotiations on the nuclear program. He stated: "We will work actively to resolve the remaining differences between the two sides. We will have effective negotiations."

According to the plan, the IAEA delegation will meet with Iranian officials on February 13. This is the 8th round of negotiations in the past year between the two sides and the 3rd visit of the IAEA delegation to Iran in the past 3 months.

The IAEA wants Iran to provide access to its nuclear facilities, especially the Parchin facility, as well as to individuals and documents that could provide information relevant to the agency's November 2011 report on Tehran's nuclear activities.

According to the report, the IAEA has reliable information that Iran was seeking to develop nuclear weapons before 2003 and that this activity is still ongoing. Meanwhile, Tehran asserts that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

In his State of the Union address on the evening of February 12, US President Barack Obama said it was time for Iran to end the confrontation over its nuclear program and pledged to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear weapons. He stressed that Iranian leaders must realize that now is the time for a diplomatic solution.

The statement was made two weeks before negotiations between the P5+1 group (including the UK, China, France, Russia, the US and Germany) and Iran are scheduled to take place in Anmati (Kazakhstan) on February 26./.

According to (TTXVN) - DT