AUSTRIA: LIBYA SIGNS AGREEMENT ALLOWING INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY (IAEA) TO INSPECT ITS NUCLEAR FACILITIES AT WILL

Record ID: 646740

  • Title: AUSTRIA: LIBYA SIGNS AGREEMENT ALLOWING INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY (IAEA) TO INSPECT ITS NUCLEAR FACILITIES AT WILL
  • Date: 11th March 2004
  • Summary: (W5)VIENNA, AUSTRIA (MARCH 10, 2004) (REUTERS) 1. MV HEAD OF IAEA CHIEF MOHAMED ELBARADEI AND LIBYAN MINISTER OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH MATOOQ MOHAMMED MATOOQ ENTERING ROOM 0.08 2. MV MOHAMED ELBARADEI AND MATOOQ MOHAMMED MATOOQ SIGNING THE IAEA SAFEGUARDS ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL; MOHAMED ELBARADEI AND MATOOQ MOHAMMED MATOOQ SHAKING HANDS (7 SHOTS) 0.54 3. SOUNDBITE (English) HEAD OF IAEA MOHAMED ELBARDEI SAYING: "The signing of the Additional Protocol is again, as I mentioned yesterday, an important tool for us to continue to verify Libya's nuclear activities and other countries to make sure that nuclear activities in Libya and other places are exclusively for peaceful purpose. As the Board also acknowledged today that Libya's decision could be and should be a first step toward an Africa and Middle East free from weapons of mass destruction and at peace." 1.29 4. REPORTERS 1.38 5. SOUNDBITE (Arabic) LIBYAN MINISTER FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH MATOOQ MOHAMMED MATOOQ SAYING "Our signing of the Protocol today is another step by Libya towards strengthening of the Declaration of December 19 and to clean Libya of all weapons of mass destruction, or any materials which could be used for mass destruction and only to have materials which will be used for peaceful technological development. It is also a step to clean the Middle East and Africa of the weapons of mass destruction and have peaceful development." 2.33 6. SOUNDBITE (English) LIBYAN MINISTER FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH MATOOQ MOHAMED MATOOQ WALKING IN CORRIDOR, SAYING "I have already said that we signed today the Additional Protocol as a sign of our full transparency and readiness to cooperate with the Agency to facilitate the work of the Agency in verifying our acivity in the past and we are looking forward to the peaceful use and cooperation of the Agency in that." 3.04 7. SOUNDBITE (English) MOHAMED ELBARADEI ANSWERING REPORTERS' QUESTIONS ON IRAN'S COOPERATION WITH IAEA, ELBARADEI SAYING "Now they are cooperating in a very good way with the Agency and I hope we will continue to get Iran's cooperation so we can verify that all their programme is exclusively for peaceful purpose. (REPORTER ASKING: AND YOU ARE POSITIVE THAT THEY WILL COOPERATE IN THE FUTURE) ELBARADEI SAYING "I trust that we will continue cooperating with them." 3.24 8. MV U.N. GUARD IN FRONT OF THE ROOM 3.31 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 26th March 2004 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: VIENNA, AUSTRIA
  • Country: Austria
  • Reuters ID: LVA1YI1JQYZ2QBMMPI9Q7S05FPNU
  • Story Text: Libya signed an agreement allowing IAEA to inspect
    its nuclear facilities at will.

    Libya took a fresh stride towards international rehabilitation on
    Wednesday (March 10, 2004) by signing an agreement allowing the U.N.

    atomic watchdog to conduct snap inspections of nuclear facilities.

    Libyan Scientific Research Minister Maatoug Mohammed Maatoug said
    after signing the accord with Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International
    Atomic Energy in Vienna:
    "Our signing of the Protocol today is another step by Libya
    towards strengthening of the Declaration of December 19 and to clean Libya of
    all weapons of mass destruction, or any materials which could be used for mass
    destruction ...It is also a step to clean the Middle East and Africa of the
    weapons of mass destruction and have peaceful development."
    ElBaradei told reporters: "The signing of the additional protocol
    is again, as I mentioned yesterday, an important tool for us to continue to
    verify Libya's nuclear activities and other countries to make sure that
    nuclear activities in Libya and other places are exclusively for peaceful
    purpose. As the Board also acknowledged today that Libya's decision could be
    and should be a first step toward an Africa and Middle East free from weapons
    of mass destruction and at peace."
    Earlier, the IAEA's governing board passed a resolution praising Libya
    for dismantling its secret nuclear weapons programme and commending Tripoli to
    the Security Council.

    Diplomats said the resolution noted Libya's past nuclear activities had
    put it in breach of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) but applauded
    its current disarmament moves.

    The moves marked significant fresh steps by Libya, long branded as a
    rogue state for sponsoring attacks like the 1988 Lockerbie airline bombing,-
    to reintegrate itself into the international community.

    Tripoli made the surprise announcement last December it was abandoning
    all WMD programmes and would cooperate with the IAEA, the United States and
    Britain to dismantle them.

    On Saturday, Libya dispatched a shipload to the United States
    containing all the equipment believed to remain from its nuclear weapons
    programme, along with longer-range missiles and launchers.

    On Monday, the IAEA supervised an airlift from Tripoli to Russia of 80
    percent enriched uranium from a reactor near the capital. The agency said the
    metal was almost pure enough to be used in a nuclear weapon.

    Asked if there would be further shipments of uranium or nuclear-related
    equipment, Maatoug told reporters: "There's nothing still to be
    removed."
    Under the additional protocol, IAEA inspectors can obtain short-notice
    access to any declared or undeclared sites where nuclear material may be
    present, in order to check for evidence of banned weapons activity.

    In recognition of Libya's efforts, the Bush administration announced
    last month it would allow U.S. oil firms to begin negotiating to resume
    operations, long banned under U.S. sanctions.

    It also eased restrictions on American travel to Libya and decided to
    let the North African country establish a diplomatic presence in Washington
    following a U.S. decision to base several of its own diplomats in Tripoli.


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