TRIPOLI, 20 February 2004 — UN nuclear watchdog chief Mohamed El-Baradei said here yesterday that his agency was ready to help Libya develop its peaceful uses of nuclear energy following the scrapping of its military programs.
He told a press conference at the end of a two-day visit here that he had discussed with officials “ways and means to expand Libya’s program of peaceful” nuclear energy.
They had agreed that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) that El-Baradei heads “will develop a feasibility study into the peaceful use of nuclear energy here in Libya.”
“We will be assisting Libya not only to eliminate its military program but also to expand its program for civilian use,” he said.
El-Baradei had said Monday in Tripoli that the two sides would make every effort to finish by June the dismantling of its weapons of mass destruction programs, following a promise Libya made on Dec. 19 to Britain and the United States to disarm.
He met with Libyan Foreign Minister Abdulrahman Mohamed Shalgam yesterday before returning to IAEA headquarters in Vienna. Shalgam told the press conference that foreign experts would be coming to Libya to discuss cooperation in the nuclear field.
Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi “wants to work with other countries to persuade them that it is better to use scientific potential for the cause of prosperity and for the Middle East region to be a peaceful region without mass destruction weapons,” he said. “I think all of us are completely aware of the need to invest all our resources for prosperity and stability and peace in this region.”
Iran Rapped Over Nuclear Omissions
The UN nuclear watchdog yesterday rapped Iran over its failure to fully disclose nuclear equipment capable of producing weapons-grade uranium, which it said was similar to Libyan technology.
The IAEA said the Islamic republic has since then failed to disclose that it has P2-centrifuges capable of making highly enriched uranium. “The omission from Iran... to any reference to its possession of the P-2 centrifuge design drawings and associated research... is a matter of serious concern,” it said. “The basic technology is very similar (to that of Libya) and was largely obtained from the same sources,” the UN nuclear watchdog said. A Western diplomat familiar with the document told AFP: “Iran has been caught lying.”
