In Geneva, the world seemed to take a step forward on Iran's uranium. The question now is whether it is about to take one step back or two.
Iran's Press TV is quoting Iran's Supreme National Security Council as saying there was no deal done in Geneva to ship out Iran's low enriched uranium (LEU) to Russia and France for further enrichment (to 20% purity), processing and eventual return to the Tehran Research Reactor. That comes as a surprise to the EU foreign policy, Javier Solana, who announced at the beginning of the month that the deal had been "agreed in principle" and that there would be a follow-on meeting in Vienna in mid-October to hammer out the details.
It will also no doubt annoy the Americans and Russians, who thought up the wheeze between themselves ahead of Geneva, as a means of buying more time for diplomacy, and the French who also took part in a side meeting at Geneva on the uranium export deal with the Iranian delegation. The head of that delegation was Saeed Jalili who is also head of the Supreme National Security Council, which is now saying: Deal, what deal?
Both the council and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad are talking about the "purchase" of 20% enriched uranium. This is what Ahmadinejad had to say on the matter to the semi-official Fars news agency (translated by BBC monitoring).
We announced that we were prepared to hold talks with the experts of other countries in relation to the purchase 20-per cent enriched nuclear fuel for the Tehran reactor. We are ready to hold talks with any country that is interested to provide the fuel. Our suggestion was welcomed and various countries, individually or in consortiums, offered to do the job.
An initial call around of diplomats drew responses ranging from straightforward annoyance to a shrugging acceptance of the convoluted nature of doing business with the Iranians. They pointed out that the follow-on meeting in Vienna on October 19 still seems to be on.
One possible explanation for the hiccup is that the Iranians are angry at something that has happened since the Geneva meeting on October 1. And one thing we know they are annoyed about is the mysterious disappearance of one of their nuclear scientists, while on a haj visit to Saudi Arabia in May.
Manouchehr Mottaki today blamed the Americans and the Saudis for the disappearance of Shahram Amiri. Mottaki did not mention Amiri's profession, but AP is reporting relatives as saying he researched medical isotopes at a Tehran university.
Meir Javedanfar has taken a look at a string of disappearances and defections that have the ring of a targeted intelligence operation.
The Iranians informed the IAEA of the existence of the Qom enrichment plant on September 21. Western officials later said that the Iranians' hand had been forced when they found out that the Qom plant had been infiltrated and exposed. They did not say how the Iranians rumbled that they had been rumbled.
