AL hails Iran nuclear declaration

Arab League (AL) Secretary General Amr Moussa has praised Iran’s nuclear declaration as a positive step towards dispelling Western fears over its nuclear program.

Iran announced a nuclear declaration on Monday following trilateral talks with non-permanent UN Security Council members Turkey and Brazil — under which Iran agrees to swap its low-enriched uranium for reactor fuel in Turkey.

Moussa said he hoped the move would “solve the current problem regarding the Iranian nuclear file,” DPA reported.

The AL chief also hailed efforts by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a fierce advocate of diplomacy in ending the standoff over Iran’s nuclear program.

While Moussa and NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, US Admiral James Stavridis, have welcomed the declaration, the European Union and Israel expressed skepticism and cast doubt on whether Iran’s latest concession would answer all concerns.

Both Brasilia and Ankara have opposed US-led efforts to slap tougher UN sanctions on Tehran over Western accusations that the Islamic Republic is harboring a covert nuclear weapons program.

Iran has denied the charges, insisting that its nuclear program is aimed at civilian purposes such as electricity generation and medical research. The nuclear declaration is the latest step in convincing Western powers that the country’s nuclear program is peaceful.

As a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), Tehran stresses its civilian nuclear program is within a legal framework.