Egypt's foreign ministry has criticized the recent resolution on Iran by the UN nuclear watchdog for its failure to mention other Middle East nuclear disarmament issues.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) passed its first resolution since early 2006, which censured Iran for withholding information on its controversial nuclear program. It also urged Iran to freeze construction of its newly revealed uranium enrichment facility in Qom.
"The resolution on the Iranian "nuclear dossier" does not take into account its regional aspect," a foreign ministry spokesman, Hossam Zaki, told journalists on Saturday, adding that the IAEA should have also mentioned Israel's nuclear potential and Middle East nuclear disarmament in the resolution.
Egypt was among the six countries that abstained during Friday's vote on the resolution. Of the 35-member IAEA Board of Governors, 25 states voted for the document. Venezuela, Malaysia, and Cuba voted against. Azerbaijan missed the ballot.
The Egyptian diplomat said that all countries, that joined the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, including Iran, are entitled to run civilian nuclear program without any preconditions.
He, however, expressed his regret about the fact that Iran had failed to inform IAEA about the construction of its second uranium enrichment facility in due time.
Zaki said that his country was worried about other non-declared nuclear objects in the Middle East.
"They threaten Egypt's national security and the region on the whole," Zaki said.
Iran has hit back at the United Nations nuclear watchdog over its critical resolution passed on Friday, saying the document is likely to damage negotiations. Iran's IAEA ambassador, Ali-Asghar Soltaniyeh, called the resolution "hasty and undue", and warned that it will "jeopardize the spirit of cooperation" necessary for talks, Tehran's state-run Press TV.
However, he said Iran will continue to cooperate with the IAEA, and urged Western powers to take on more cooperative and less confrontational stance in their relations with Iran.
Tehran is already under three sets of UN sanctions for refusing to halt uranium enrichment. Iran insists it needs nuclear technology to generate electricity.
CAIRO, November 28 (RIA Novosti)
