Russia to continue nuclear cooperation with Iran
Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that his country intended to continue its nuclear cooperation with Iran, but emphasised Russia did not want to see the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
Russia is building a nuclear power plant in Iran, and Israeli officials have expressed concern to Putin that Tehran would use the technology to further its nuclear weapons programme. Putin said the nuclear components did not threaten Israel’s security.
“We intend to continue in all our programmes with Iran because we believe such programmes have peaceful ends,” he said today, during a joint news conference with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas.
Putin added that he would offer equipment and training to the Palestinian Authority to help their security forces maintain order.
“If we are waiting for President Abbas to fight terrorism, he cannot do it with the resources he has now,” Putin said.
“We will give the Palestinian Authority technical help by sending equipment, training people. We will give the Palestinian Authority helicopters and also communication equipment. We will bring Palestinian police for training.”
Putin had earlier laid a wreath on the late-Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s tomb in Ramallah and before talks with Arafat’s successor, Mahmoud Abbas.
Putin was greeted at the Palestinian headquarters, known as the muqaata, by an honour guard of Palestinian security forces. A military band played a halting version of Russia’s national anthem and the Palestinian anthem as Putin and Abbas stood side by side.
Security officers then placed a wreath, with a banner reading “from the president of the Russian Federation,” before Arafat’s tomb. Putin approached, bowed his head, stood silently at attention for a few seconds, bowed again and walked away.
Dozens of Russian women married to Palestinian men stood outside the compound, greeting the Russian leader’s arrival with exultant chants of “Putin.”
One of Putin’s goals is to strengthen the Russian role as a player in Middle East diplomacy. Russia is one of the four co-sponsors of the “road map” peace plan, along with the US, UN and the European Union, but the Americans have taken the lead.
US President George Bush formally presented the plan in June 2003, but it stalled after neither side carried out its initial requirements.
Putin’s talks in Israel yesterday concentrated on other issues – Iran, Syria and anti-Semitism.
Putin demanded that Iran submit its nuclear programme to international monitoring.
“It’s necessary for our Iranian partners to reject the creation of nuclear cycle technology,” referring to enriching uranium, “and not to hinder placing all its nuclear programmes under complete international control,” Putin said.
Iran denies it seeks atomic weapons.
The statement by Putin, was perhaps his strongest call for Tehran to convince the world it does not want nuclear weapons.
