U.S. urges Iran to respond to IAEA report

PanARMENIAN.Net - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton demanded on Friday, November 11, that Iran respond within days to a UN nuclear watchdog's accusations of atomic weapons work, and said Washington was consulting allies on further steps to pressure Tehran, Reuters reported.

Clinton, speaking at an Asia-Pacific summit in Honolulu, made clear that the United States was seeking to marshal international support for additional sanctions against Iran, but stopped short of specifying actions under consideration.

Her comments followed a report from the International Atomic Energy Agency earlier this week that concluded that Iran had worked on developing an atomic bomb design and may still be conducting such research.

Clinton, speaking to reporters after talks with her counterparts at the APEC meeting, said, “We discussed the recent report raising serious concerns about the weapons-related work the Iranian government has undertaken.”

“Iran has a long history of deception and denial regarding its nuclear program, and in the coming days we expect Iran to answer the serious questions raised by this report,” she said.

Clinton said the United States “will continue to consult closely with partners and allies on the next steps we can take to increase pressure on Iran.”