No smoking gun

last updated 8 January 2015

Tehran

The U.N. has found no firm evidence that Iran is building nuclear weapons, the International Atomic Energy Agency said this week. The agency’s head, Mohamed El Baradei, said he could not substantiate U.S. allegations that Iran’s nuclear program was intended to make bombs. “But are we in a position to say that everything is peaceful?” El Baradei said. “Obviously we are not at this stage.” The U.S. wants the IAEA to make up its mind on Iran by next month, so that the U.N. Security Council can take action in November. But the Iranian delegation to the IAEA meeting this week said it was fed up with U.N. inspections. It said its agreement to stop enriching uranium would soon end.