Iran Says Ready to Discuss Surprise Inspections of Nuclear Facilities with IAEA

Iran says it is ready to engage in discussions with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regarding surprise inspections of its nuclear facilities. Kamal Kharrazi, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic, stated in an interview with CNN on Thursday that Tehran wants to expand its cooperation with the agency, including negotiations on signing an additional protocol to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Iran is under increasing international pressure to sign the additional protocol, which would allow for more unannounced and surprise inspections of its nuclear sites. Hassan Nafaa, head of the Political Science Department at Cairo University, told Voice of America that other countries, including Iran's Arab neighbors, are concerned about its nuclear capabilities and are pressuring Tehran to accept stricter inspections. Mr. Nafaa stated that more efforts are needed to convince the international community that Iran is genuinely not interested in producing nuclear bombs and that its nuclear program is solely for specific peaceful purposes. For this reason, he believes Iran is serious about accepting more inspections of its nuclear program.