IAEA conference closes with rifts over Israel

Deutsche Presse Agentur
Published: Friday September 22, 2006

Vienna - Diplomatic manoeuvring over a resolution criticizing Israel's nuclear weapons capabilities failed Friday at the close of the International Atomic Energy Agency's 50th annual General Conference. The IAEA instead passed a more general resolution calling for a Middle East free of nuclear weapons, which did not single out Israel.

After many hours of backroom negotiations, all attempts to reach a consensus on the Israel-specific resolution failed. Diplomats familiar with the negotiations said consensus had been close and frustration was now mounting over the divisions opening between member states.

The draft resolution had called on Israel to join the nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty in order to facilitate the creation of a nuclear free zone in the region.

Israel has never acknowledged having a nuclear capability, but it is widely believed the country has an arsenal of about 200 nuclear warheads.

Canada eventually called a vote to adjourn and drop the topic off the conference's agenda. The vote was won by 45 votes for, 29 against and 19 abstentions, among them Russia and China.

But a number of nations stated their continued concerns with the issue after the vote.

The United States and Israel voted also against the more general statement calling for a nuclear-weapons-free Middle East, which was approved by 89 countries. Three countries abstained.

Israel stressed in a statement after the vote that its basic policy had not changed, but that it could not associate itself with the resolution due to certain amendments added.

It has become common practise for Arab states to press for a resolution against Israel at the annual IAEA conference, usually purely for political effect as resolutions agreed are non-binding on IAEA members.

Despite the disagreements on Israel, there was broad agreement on technical matters concerning the agency.

The delegates from the IAEA's 140 Member States focused on the issues of nuclear safety and security, setting the tone for the UN nuclear watchdog's work for the next year.