West seeks consensus over Iran dispute, NAM differs

Western countries pushed on Tuesday for broad support on the need for Iran to freeze uranium enrichment, but Non-Aligned countries backed Tehran, saying all nations had the right to pursue a nuclear programme for civilian use.

Western countries pushed on Tuesday for broad support on the need for Iran to freeze uranium enrichment, but Non-Aligned countries backed Tehran, saying all nations had the right to pursue a nuclear programme for civilian use.

A statement drawn up by the 16-nation Non-Aligned bloc at the board meeting of the IAEA ‘‘reaffirmed the basic and inalienable right’’ of all countries to develop, produce and use atomic energy ‘‘for peaceful purposes, without any discrimination and in conformity with their respective legal obligations’’.

The statement also warned that ‘‘any attack or threat of attack against peaceful nuclear facilities …constitutes a grave violation of international law’’.

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The US and its allies are focusing on key nations with clout in the NAM, such as Brazil, India and Argentina, urging them to put pressure on Iran in individual statements to accept an offer for talks, diplomats said.

The Western push suffered a setback today when China and Russia rejected joining the West in a joint statement urging Iran to halt uranium enrichment.

Diplomats played down the significance of this, however, as China and Russia have already joined Britain, France, Germany and the US in a ministerial agreement on June 1 calling on Iran to halt enrichment

and join in talks on guaranteeing it will not make nuclear weapons.

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‘‘The effort didn’t work to do a joint statement in Vienna,’’ a senior European diplomat said.

A vigorous debate on Iran but no resolution is expected at this week’s IAEA meeting of its 35-nation board of governors, with the Iranian issue expected to come up on Wednesday or Thursday. Each of the six countries that have made the offer to Iran are expected to issue individual statements.

Russia and China are both reluctant to threaten sanctions against Iran .

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