MOSCOW, June 4 (UPI) -- Russian Atomic Energy Minister Alexander Rumyantsev said Wednesday Moscow would supply Iran with nuclear fuel for its power plant in Bushehr when both countries sign an agreement on reimporting used fuel back to Russia.
He dismissed media reports that Russia would halt nuclear fuel shipments until Tehran signs a protocol of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, insisting the only cause of a holdup is the as yet unsigned bilateral agreement on used fuel.
He stressed the document should be signed within four to six weeks, noting "technical reasons" such as Russia's ecological regulations governing the import of used nuclear fuel had caused a delay in signing the agreement with Iran.
At the same time, he acknowledged Russia may back off from building a second nuclear reactor for Iran following strong pressure from the Bush administration.
Rumyantsev said U.S. concerns had to be taken into account, noting the Russian Foreign Ministry had pressured his ministry to apply ironclad security to the project after Washington raised concerns over the possibility of a transfer of sensitive technology to Iran that may be used in Iranian weapons programs.
Rumyantsev's remarks were at odds with statements made by British officials who said Russian President Vladimir Putin had committed to blocking shipments of nuclear fuel to Iran during the Group of Eight summit in Evian, France.
Putin himself went on the record to defend Russia's cooperation with Iran.
"Iran is our neighbor, we cooperate with it and will continue to cooperate," he said in Evian, but added, "We will insist that all Iran's nuclear programs remain under the control of the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)."
This position was confirmed Wednesday by Putin's senior economic adviser, Andrei Illarionov.
He told reporters Iran should "assure the entire world that it is not developing a military nuclear program alongside its civilian nuclear energy program."
To achieve this and "remove all concerns," it is best to work with IAEA inspectors who should be granted full access, Illarionov said.
Meanwhile, in Madrid, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov also assured his counterparts from NATO that Moscow would not supply Iran with nuclear fuel unless there are clear guarantees that used fuel is returned to Russia and that Iran would have to cooperation with IAEA inspectors.
It is understood that Iran is ready to continue full cooperation with the IAEA and allow unlimited inspection of the construction site at Bushehr in a bid to show that the project Russia is helping Iran complete is of a peaceful nature, something Moscow has insisted on all along.
However, the Tehran regime does not want to be in a position where it will be obliged to open all sites to mandatory random inspections by IAEA officials, something the Bush administration is pressing for.
Iran has, therefore, refused to sign an additional protocol of the non-proliferation treaty that would almost automatically give U.N. nuclear experts access to suspect sites on its territory.
Russia is keen to maintain its relationship with Iran, completing the $800 million contract to supply Bushehr with a working reactor which should be brought online by the end of 2004.
Germany's Siemens company had signed a deal with the shah to build Bushehr, but pulled out of the project after the 1979 Islamic revolution, and the complex was mothballed until Russia took over the task in 1994, much to Washington's displeasure.
