Tehran bans military sites for UN team

Published December 6, 2004

TEHRAN, Dec 5: Iran said on Sunday it was not obliged to allow UN atomic energy agency inspectors to visit military sites alleged to be involved in secret nuclear weapons work, but that it was willing to discuss the issue.

"It is not a matter of unlimited commitments and unlimited inspections," foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters when asked if International Atomic Energy Agency teams would be able to probe two suspect military facilities.

"We will act in accordance with the NPT (Non Proliferation Treaty), our duties and responsibilities," Mr Asefi added. The IAEA is mandated under the NPT to verify that all nuclear material in a country is declared and not being diverted for nuclear weapons purposes, as the United States claims is the case in Iran. -AFP