Iran urges more talks on fuel swap

Iran’s Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has stressed the significance of continued consultations on ways to implement the Tehran Declaration for a potential nuclear fuel swap.

Foreign ministers of Iran, Turkey, and Brazil established and signed the declaration in the Iranian capital of Tehran on May 17, according to which, the Islamic Republic would ship 1,200 kilograms of its low-enriched uranium to Turkey for guaranteed swap with 120 kilograms of 20-percent enriched nuclear fuel rods.

The 20-percent enriched fuel is what Iran needs to power its Tehran research reactor, which produces radioisotopes for treatment of cancer patients.

In a meeting with Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim in New York on Tuesday, Mottaki said agreements signed between Iran and Brazil during the past two years would prepare the ground for institutionalizing mutual relations in all fields.

He added that exchange of visits between Iranian and Brazilian officials would “guarantee a bright future” and deep-rooted interactions between the two nations.

Amorim further pointed out that Tehran and Brasilia have positive relations and called for the expansion of mutual ties in variety of fields.

In a separate meeting with Foreign Minister of Eritrea Osman Mohammed Saleh, Mottaki reiterated that promoting ties with African nations is among the top priorities of Iran’s foreign policy.

He said the Islamic Republic and Eritrea should strengthen their cooperation, particularly in trade and economic fields.

Mottaki also held talks with Tunisian Foreign Minister Kamel Morjane and urged the formation of a joint economic commission and exchanging ministerial visits between the capitals of Iran and Tunisia to further expand ties.

Moreover, the Iranian minister briefed his Tunisian counterpart on latest developments in Afghanistan and on Iran’s broad cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Morjane also insisted on expanding relations with the Islamic Republic in different fields.

In another meeting with Grenadian Foreign Minister Peter David, the top Iranian diplomat said Iran has great potential in the fields of trade, implementation of industrial and agricultural projects and investment in small and medium projects.

Mottaki called on Grenada to provide Iranian firms with resources to survey the grounds for expanding cooperation signing agreements in investment and trade areas.

David agreed that the two countries should expand economic cooperation in the future.