UNITED NATIONS, May 3 (UPI) -- All states should adopt the additional protocols to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the U.N. nuclear watchdog's director general said Monday.
The international community descended Monday on New York to take part in a U.N. conference on nuclear non-proliferation.
The United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency notes that 172 nations have signed on to the NPT, while 98 of those have adopted the so-called Additional Protocols.
"I call on all states that have not yet done so to bring into force additional protocols without delay," said IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano. "Unless a state has an Additional Protocol in force, the IAEA will never have sufficient basis on which to draw conclusions on the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities.
The additional protocol gives IAEA inspectors greater access to nuclear information and nuclear sites in a country of interest.
The NPT conference in New York is overshadowed by the presence of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose country faces an international backlash over a controversial nuclear program. Iran has signed the NPT and the Additional Protocols.
The United States and many of its Western allies believe Iran is developing the technology needed to produce a nuclear weapon. Iran insists the program is for civilian use. Ahmadinejad in his address Monday described nuclear weapons as "hazardous."
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in his Monday address singled out Iran, saying the leadership needed to cooperate fully with the IAEA.
"Let me be clear: The onus is on Iran to clarify the doubts and concerns of its program," he said.