Iran talks of "positive steps' during nuclear inspectors' visit

Feb 6, 2012, 9:27 GMT

Tehran - Iran on Monday said 'some positive steps' were taken during the visit by international nuclear inspectors that was aimed at settling the dispute over the aims of its programme.

The team from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) returned to Vienna on last week, having spent three days in the country that is suspected of developing a nuclear weapon.

'The recent trip by the IAEA inspectors to Tehran was satisfactory and some positive steps were taken for settling the differences,' Foreign Miniser Ali-Akbar Salehi told the Khabar news network.

'Iran and the IAEA will continue their talks in the near future,' he added, referring to a meeting scheduled for February 21.

The inspectors have made no specific comments on the outcome of the Iran visit but the IAEA is expected to release its report on Iran within days of the meeting.

Salehi said the meeting would be based only on technical and legal matters and rejected suggestions that the talks had anything to do with the resumption of Tehran's negotiations with world powers.

Only the IAEA, and not Britain, China, France, German Russia and the United States, could supervise Iran's nuclear programmes, he said.

Iran has on several occasions rejected the main demand by the six nations that it suspends uranium enrichment activities until the nature of its nuclear programs can be clarified.

Iran insists that its nuclear projects were solely for peaceful purposes.