Chinese FM praises Iran cooperation with IAEA

Foreign Minister of China Yang Jiechi praised Iran’s cooperation with the United Nations nuclear watchdog in a telephone conversation with Iran’s top nuclear negotiator on Wednesday. The Chinese minister also voiced Beijing’s support for Tehran’s legitimate right to use peaceful nuclear energy.

In his phone call to Secretary of Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili, the Chinese minister added that the latest report of the chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Iran’s peaceful nuclear activities was “positive” and “realistic.” The IAEA Director General, Mohamed ElBaradei, presented his 11-page report to the agency’s Board of Governors on February 22 reiterating the non-diversion of Iran from its peaceful nuclear program.

He said during its studies in the past months, the IAEA has “managed to clarify all the remaining issues which are the scope and nature of Iran’s enrichment program.”
ElBaradei also stressed that the IAEA “made good progress in clarifying the outstanding issues that had to do with Iran’s past nuclear activities.”
As for some alleged reports that Iran has conducted weaponization studies, the report said, the agency has “not seen any indication that these studies were linked to nuclear material.”
“China appreciates Iran for its good cooperation with the IAEA to remove the outstanding issues,” Yang Jiechi said.

Meanwhile, the Iranian official said, for his part, “Iran has proved its ultimate good-will to settle the outstanding issues by taking a positive step to this end.”
Jalili stressed that Tehran’s cooperation with the UN nuclear watchdog has taken any excuses from the enemies of Iran.