Chirac: Only IAEA can determine Iran's goals

Jocelyn Gecker, IndyStar:

French President Jacques Chirac said Saturday that only the U.N. nuclear watchdog could draw conclusions about the goal of Iran's nuclear program, steering clear of his foreign minister's recent declaration that it is a clandestine weapons project.

Chirac said it was not his role to say whether Iran was secretly making nuclear weapons.

"There are experts who are qualified to speak on the subject, and they are from the International Atomic Energy Agency," Chirac told a news conference in Bangkok, the first stop on an Asian tour that also takes him to India. "Let's see what the experts say." READ MORE

French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy on Thursday called Iran's nuclear activity a "clandestine military nuclear program" and accused Tehran of ignoring the international community's demand to suspend all nuclear activity.

It was France's most direct accusation against Tehran in the escalating international dispute, and a departure from Europe's traditional diplomatic caution.

Chirac refused to back Douste-Blazy's comments and sought to recast them as no different from what France has always said.

"The position of France has absolutely not changed," Chirac said. "It is a common position that we share with our British and German partners."

France, Britain and Germany led talks with Tehran in an effort to guarantee Iran's nuclear program remains peaceful. The negotiations collapsed last month when Iran said it was resuming its uranium enrichment program, and the Europeans joined the United States in a successful effort to get the issue referred to the U.N. Security Council.

The Security Council is expected to consider taking steps against Iran, including possible sanctions, after the Vienna, Austria-based IAEA issues another report on Iran at a March 6 meeting of its 35-nation board of governors.

Iran insists its nuclear program aims only to generate electricity.

Iranian officials are due to hold talks this week on a Russian proposal to move Iran's uranium enrichment program to Russia and abandon enrichment on Iranian soil for a significant period of time.

The Russian offer has been backed by the U.S. and the European Union as a way to provide international oversight and ease suspicions that Tehran's aim is to produce weapons.