Iraq ‘never rekindled’ nuclear ambitions
Iraq never restarted its nuclear weapons programme after UN inspectors confiscated resources in the 1990s, according to Abbas Balasem, an official in Iraq’s new Ministry of Science and Technology.
Mr. Balasem’s comments appear consistent with last week’s report from the UN’s nuclear agency, the International Atomic Energy Agency, that reported Iraq was incapable of activating its nuclear weapons programme after the 1991 Gulf War.
‘There was no way to revive those attempts,’ said Mr Balasem.
‘There was nothing left.’
Mr Balasem made his statement at a meeting of the IAEA in Vienna.
Iraq’s capacity to launch weapons of mass destruction WMDs was a mainstay argument of the US and Britain’s decision for invading Iraq in March.
Leaders from the UK, France and Germany will meet Saturday in a one-day summit in Berlin to discuss the idea of a multinational peacekeeping force under US command in Iraq.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder will meet French President Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister Tony Blair.
IAEA scientists also reported Tuesday that there was little danger of terrorists using stolen radioactive material from Iraq to build a so-called ‘dirty bomb.’
Scientists said most of the looted material was low in radiation and most had been recovered.
