Russians and Iranians Come to Standstill Over Nuclear Power Plant Payments
The talks between Russia and Iran concerning payment for fuel for a Russian-build power plant in Iran have come to a standstill. Iran has been delaying payment for the fuel and had refused to sign documents promising payment. Both sides are claiming the other are negotiating in bad faith.
The Iranian Atomic Energy Organization has said through a spokesman that Iran was prepared to make payments to Russia in order to be ready for the planed September launch of the Bushehr plant. He claims that Russia needs to deliver the uranium fuel this month because that was the agreement previously made.
The Russians claim that Iran has refused to sign a document that would act as a promissory note for the increased payments and that they will not ship the fuel this month because of that. The anonymous Russian official making the comments says this disagreement will delay the launch of the plant.
The Iranian statement came after three days of negotiations in Moscow that failed to resolve the issue, which is a financial dispute about the construction of the plant. According to Russia, Iran has only paid a fraction of the required monthly payments of $25 million for the construction work being done at the plant and that because of the payment delays, the reactor’s launch and the uranium fuel deliveries would be disrupted.
Iran is denying Russia’s claims that they are not meeting the payment schedule. The Iranians feel that Russia is giving in to the international pressure about the Iranian nuclear program. The UN Security Council is developing sanctions to try to pressure Iran into stopping its uranium enrichment program because many countries feel that it is an attempt to develop a nuclear weapon. Iran claims it has a legal right to develop nuclear power and that is all they will use the enrichment program for.
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