Report: Nuclear forum to ignore Iran, urge Israel to sign NPT

[Jefferson23]

Nuclear disarmament official says Iran threatened to slam U.S., western powers with 'serious nuclear noncompliance' if mentioned in final NPT conference resolution.

Iran may escape censure at a meeting of the 189 signatories of a global anti-nuclear arms pact despite growing concerns that Tehran might be developing atomic weapons, according to a draft declaration.

The United States and other countries say Iran is in breach of its obligations under the 1970 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a landmark arms-control pact that has been the focus of a month-long conference and review wrapping up this week.

A draft declaration prepared by conference president Libran Cabactulan of the Philippines fails to mention Iran or its nuclear program, though it names India, Pakistan and Israel as NPT holdouts. Diplomats said Iran had threatened to veto any final declaration if it was named.

The draft also names North Korea, which pulled out of the NPT several years ago.

Ray Acheson of Reaching Critical Will, a nuclear disarmament group, said the Iranian delegation had insisted that if it were named, the United States and others should be as well for "serious noncompliance with Article I of the NPT."

Article I of the NPT obliges the five nuclear powers -- the United States, Britain, France, China and Russia -- not to transfer nuclear weapons technology to other countries.

Diplomats said the reference to Article I violations was a dig at Western support for Israel, which is presumed to have a sizable nuclear arsenal but neither confirms nor denies it.

The draft calls on NPT holdouts Israel, India and Pakistan to sign the treaty and allow U.N. inspectors to inspect their atomic facilities.

remainder: http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/report-nuclear-forum-to-ignore-iran-urge-israel-to-sign-npt-1.292226

edited for clarity.

[Jefferson23]

1. U.S. Senate to postpone Iran sanctions bill in view of UN progress

Secretary of State Clinton dismisses newly brokered uranium swap deal as a 'ploy' to avoid new UN sanctions over Iran's nuclear program.
By The Associated Press
Tags: Israel news Iran nuclear Hillary Clinton Turkey

Two U.S. lawmakers leading efforts to craft an Iran sanctions bill said in a joint statement Tuesday that they will delay passage of their legislation in light of the progress made at the UN.

They had intended to send a sanctions measure to President Barack Obama by the end of May, despite the administration's preference that they wait until after the U.N. and European Union adopt sanctions.

"We believe that our overriding goal of preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability is best served by providing a limited amount of time for the UN to complete its work and for the European Union to take action on Iran at its mid-June summit," said Democratic Senator Chris Dodd and Democratic Representative Howard Berman in a joint statement.

The U.S. and other Western countries accuse Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons under cover of a civilian atomic energy program. Iran denies the charge but has repeatedly refused to prove that its program is peaceful.

Earlier Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on rejected as inadequate an Iranian plan to swap some of its enriched uranium for reactor fuel and called the offer a transparent ploy to try to avoid new UN Security Council sanctions over its suspect nuclear program.

remainder: http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/u-s-senate-to-postpone-iran-sanctions-bill-in-view-of-un-progress-1.292162