Earlier this week, Director General Mohamed ElBaradei released reports on the IAEA's investigation of Iran and Syria.

The Director General reports that Iran continues to enrich uranium - this despite the absence of an obvious civil requirement. At the same time, Iran refuses to explain its past activities relevant to fashioning highly enriched uranium into nuclear weapons. This is deeply troubling. It is deeply troubling because Iran's actions violate multiple resolutions of the IAEA Board and the UN Security Council. It is deeply troubling because it is only a small step from the low enriched uranium that Iran is now stockpiling to the highly enriched uranium that Iran would need to build a bomb.

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Syria is not Iran, and we do not seek to make Syria into Iran. But this requires Syria to cooperate with the IAEA. We hope that it will not adopt the tactics of hindrance and unhelpfulness that Tehran has so finely honed and that remain so evident in the Director General's latest report.

The IAEA Board will consider both of these reports at its meeting next week. We expect Board members to call on both countries to cooperate with the IAEA and meet their international obligations.