The European Commission said on Wednesday that monitoring of Iranian
nuclear facilities is the responsibility of the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA), not certain countries or organizations, Reuters
reports.
The Iranian representative to the IAEA, Ali Asgar Soltaniye, sent an
invitation letter to the six mediators in the Iranian nuclear program
settlement (Russia, USA, China, UK, France and Germany) and the EU on
Tuesday. The letter invited them to visit Iranian nuclear facilities,
RIA Novosti reports.
A spokesman for the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs,
Michael Mann, said at a briefing in Brussels that the letter was left
unanswered.
The letter said that the best dates for the visit are January 15 and
16, prior to the summit in Istanbul. The document clarified that the
officials may visit the uranium-enrichment plant in Natanza and the
heavy water production facility and nuclear reactor in Arak.
China accepted the invitation.
Geneva held talks on the Iranian nuclear program on December 7. The
six mediators agreed to continue discussions in Istanbul in late
January.
The USA and a set of other countries accuse Iran of developing nuclear
arms against the background of a peaceful nuclear energy program.
Tehran denies the accusations, insisting that the program is aimed at
fulfilling demands for electricity.
The UN Security Council passed a new resolution on Iran in June 2010.
It is the fourth resolution against Tehran for refusing to fulfil
international demands and clarify nuclear issues, including the
military nature of the program.
