Nuclear warheads in U.S., Europe pose threat to humanity – Iranian envoy
By Sara Rajabova
The tens of thousands of nuclear warheads in the United States and around Europe pose a direct threat to humanity, Iranian ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Ali Asghar Soltanieh said in a speech at meeting of the Preparatory Committee for the 2015 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference in Geneva on Tuesday.
Soltanieh criticized the U.S., Great Britain and other Western countries for conducting nuclear tests and transferring nuclear arms and technology to non-NPT member states.
"The continued existence of tens of thousands of nuclear warheads in the stockpile of the nuclear-weapon states, most of them on high-trigger alert, and their day by day modernization, constitute the most serious threat to the survival of mankind," Soltanieh said.
He went on saying that spending on nuclear weapons has increased dramatically since 2010 and will reach at least $1 trillion over the next decade.
"The United States itself will spend untold billions of dollars to operate its nuclear armada during its 50-year planned lifespan (from 2030 to 2080)," he added.
To fulfill its responsibility towards the humanity, Soltanieh said, Iran is determined to pursue all its nuclear programs including fuel cycles and enrichment activities within the frameworks of peaceful activities and continue to act under the IAEA supervision just like before.
Meanwhile, Iran and the IAEA are set to hold talks over Tehran's nuclear energy programs next month.
The two sides will meet at the offices of Iran's mission to the IAEA in the Austrian capital, Vienna on May 15.
The agency's delegation will be headed by Head of the Department of Safeguards of the IAEA Herman Nackaerts .
The upcoming negotiations are expected to be held at a technical level.
Iran and the IAEA have already met for nine rounds of talks since late 2011. Their last meeting was held in the Iranian capital Tehran in mid-February.
The U.S. and its Western allies suspect Iran of developing a nuclear weapon - something that Iran denies. Iran has on numerous occasions stated that it does not seek to develop nuclear weapons, using nuclear energy for medical researches instead.