By refusing to suspend all of its uranium-enrichment-related and reprocessing activities, the Iranian government is defying the United Nations Security Council. Enriched uranium is a major component of nuclear weapons.
On July 31, the U-N Security Council adopted resolution sixteen-ninety-six, which made clear the conditions Iran must meet regarding its nuclear program, in particular, Iran’s full and verifiable suspension of all its enrichment-related and reprocessing activities. If Iran refused to comply with the resolution by August 31, the Security Council said it would adopt appropriate measures under Article forty-one of Chapter seven of the U-N Charter, which provides for sanctions.
In a six-page report, the International Atomic Energy Agency, or I-A-E-A, said Iran failed to suspend its uranium-enrichment-related and reprocessing activities. John Bolton, the U.S. Ambassador to the U-N, said, "The report is short and to the point and concludes that after all these years of trying, the I-A-E-A is still unable to confirm the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program":
"That's a red flag. That says that the Iranian program contains much that should be worried about. . . .and underlines our concern that Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons. There's simply no explanation for the range of Iranian behavior, which we've seen over the years, other than that they're pursuing a weapons capability."
President George W. Bush commented on Iran's defiance of the U-N Security Council:
"We know the death and suffering that Iran's sponsorship of terrorists has brought, and we can imagine how much worse it would be if Iran were allowed to acquire nuclear weapons."
Mr. Bush says, "It is time for Iran to make a choice":
"We've made our choice: we will continue to work closely with our allies to find a diplomatic solution."
Says Mr. Bush, "There must be consequences for Iran's defiance, and we must not allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon."
The preceding was an editorial reflecting the views of the United States Government.
