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Q Let's turn to Iran for a second. Larry Franklin's case had to do with presidential policy on Iran, for the most part, according to news reports. Mordechai Vanunu, the Israeli whistleblower, has been urging for some time that there be a trade-off between the Iranian nuclear program and the ending of the Israeli one. And there has been, as you know, negotiations in Jerusalem on that, or some information from the IAEA has been transmitted to the Israeli government.
Now, I wonder what the U.S. attitude is in Vienna at the IAEA on this subject of trading off Israeli nuclear program, an ending to it, whatever --
MR. BOUCHER: I guess that's being speculated about in the press. But that is not the issue in Vienna. The issue in Vienna is whether Iran has for almost two decades hidden a covert program designed to make nuclear weapons, and whether or not Iran has complied with the obligations that it -- the requirements of the Board of Governors resolutions, the requirements of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and the protocols that Iran has -- well, I guess I'm not sure of the status of the additional protocols -- but the requirements of the treaty, and the commitments that Iran itself made. That's the matter that's before the International Atomic Energy Agency and that nations are currently discussing now.
Q Could I follow up on that? Does the United States, then, feel that the Israeli nuclear program, which is now out -- Avner Cohen has written a full book on it; Mordechai Vanunu spent 18 years in jail because of it; it's obvious that they do have such a nuclear program. Does the United States consider that that's absolutely essential to Israel's security?
MR. BOUCHER: I'm not making judgments or presumptions about that. We've had a view on the universal adherence to the Non-Proliferation Treaty that we've expressed many times. That applies in all cases.
Q But Israel is not a member. It's refused to be a member.
MR. BOUCHER: That's right. We encourage all nations to be members and adhere to the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Q On Iran, a senior U.S. official is being quoted as saying that this site, called Parchin, demonstrates Iran's intent to acquire a nuclear weapon. Is that the State Department's view? Do you have such a sort of unequivocal view that what you know about the site demonstrates that intent? Or is it not so clear-cut?
MR. BOUCHER: I have to say I'm not in a position to really go into any information about this.
I'm not in a position to share any information about I guess what was reported -- possibility of nuclear-related activity at an Iranian high-explosive facility.
Obviously our view is that Iran should cooperate in every way with the International Atomic Energy Agency, and that Iran should try to reassure the world and its neighborhood that they are not doing any work that's related to nuclear weapons. That's what this is fundamentally all about. But specifically what might be going on or not going on at this site, I really am not in a position to go into.
Q Okay. Can you say -- and I'm not trying to get you to discuss something that I realize you are going to have a hard time discussing -- but can you say whether you have certainty about Iraq's (sic) pursuit of nuclear weapons because of this site?
MR. BOUCHER: I would not --
Q Iran, excuse me. Iran.
Q They did have certainty about Iraq, too. (Laughs.)
MR. BOUCHER: I would not be able to relate that kind of conclusion to any specific site. But I think it has been very clear, we have made very clear, that Iran's activity -- that activity has been reported by the IAEA, activity that we have talked about for many years -- in our view, is ample evidence that Iran has a nuclear weapons program, and that these activities -- many of these activities Iran has conducted point in that direction.
Q New subject?
Q No.
MR. BOUCHER: Terri?
Q Back in Vienna, anything to report on the resolution? The word is that Germany was one of the obstacles holding back full agreement by the EU-3, for example. Can you say whether any progress has been made on that?
MR. BOUCHER: I really can't, because it's a moving game, and there are ongoing consultations. We feel the process in Vienna has been constructive. We are trying to work with other governments, particularly with the delegation from the European 3 nations, to try to come to agreement on a resolution that expresses what we think are concerns that we all share about Iran and Iran's nuclear activities and the insufficient cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Q So if you don't have agreement yet from the EU-3, can you confirm that it's still -- that Britain and France are on board and Germany's holding out?
MR. BOUCHER: No, I wouldn't want to identify any particular nation during the course of these discussions because, as I say, it's ongoing negotiations, ongoing consultations in Vienna. And this is a fast-moving game that I couldn't pretend to put my figure on at a single moment.
Q Are you optimistic there will be a draft ready for a vote tomorrow?
MR. BOUCHER: We'll see.
Q We'll see if you're optimistic? (Laughs.)
MR. BOUCHER: (Laughs.) I'll be optimistic after it happens.
Q (Laughs.)
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