ISLAMABAD, 27 September 2005 — Pakistan opposes Iran being referred to the UN Security Council for its nuclear program which the West suspects is a front for developing nuclear weapons, the Pakistani Foreign Ministry said yesterday.
Pakistan instead wanted a settlement of the row over Iran’s nuclear program within the framework of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and was opposed to the use of force, said Foreign Ministry spokesman Muhammad Naeem Khan.
“We have a very clear position on the subject and it is reflected in the voting pattern that we have adopted,” Khan told a weekly news briefing in the Pakistani capital.
“We are opposed to its referral to the UN Security Council,” he said.
The IAEA on Saturday passed a resolution requiring Iran to be reported to the Security Council over its nuclear plans.
Pakistan was one of 12 members of the board of governors of the IAEA that abstained in voting on the resolution which was supported by 22 members including the United States, France,
Britain and Pakistan’s main rival, India.
Pakistan, an ally in the US-led war on terror and the only Islamic country with nuclear weapons, faces a tricky balancing act as it tries to boost strategic ties with Washington while maintaining good relations with Iran, a fellow Muslim country and its western neighbor.
