UN cites progress in Iran arms probe
VIENNA — A senior UN official announced progress Friday in long-stalled efforts to resume a probe of suspicions that Iran may have worked to develop nuclear arms, saying the investigation could be re- started by early next year.
Herman Nackaerts of the International Atomic Energy Agency spoke of headway after returning from talks with Iranian officials in Tehran, saying his team was “able to make progress” and the IAEA expects to “start implementing ”an agreement on the probe shortly after new talks in Tehran Jan. 16.
He acknowledged that a key IAEA request — a visit to a site linked to suspected nuclear weapons research — was again denied. In comments to state TV, Iranian envoy Ali Asghar Soltanieh called the talks “constructive.”