Gaza on verge of famine as war escalates, ceasefire talks stall    Gaza crisis, trade on agenda as Trump hosts Starmer in Scotland    Obama calls for aid access to Gaza, says 'no justification' for withholding food    Egyptian president follows up on initiatives to counter extremist thought    Egypt's SCZONE eyes deeper investment, port digitalisation ties with Singapore    Egypt's gold prices slip slightly on July 28th    Egypt's Housing Min. reviews HDP marketing plan    Indian Embassy to launch cultural festival in Assiut, film fest in Cairo    Egypt, South Africa pledge to deepen development cooperation at G20 meeting    Egypt's PM orders road maintenance review, tougher penalties to curb accidents    Egypt, Novartis explore expanding collaboration in oncology, cardiology    Egyptian aid convoy heads toward Gaza as humanitarian crisis deepens    Midar partners with Adeer to develop Boulevard project in Mostakbal City with EGP 70bn investment    Association of Real Estate Developers seeks urgent meeting over threatened land deallocation on Northwest Coast    Culture minister launches national plan to revive film industry, modernise cinematic assets    Sudan's ambassador to Egypt holds reconstruction talks on with Arab League    I won't trade my identity to please market: Douzi    Egypt welcomes 25-nation statement urging end to Gaza war    Sisi sends letter to Nigerian president affirming strategic ties    Egypt, Senegal sign pharma MoU to unify regulatory standards    Two militants killed in foiled plot to revive 'Hasm' operations: Interior ministry    Egypt, Somalia discuss closer environmental cooperation    Egypt foils terrorist plot, kills two militants linked to Hasm group    Egypt's EHA, Huawei discuss enhanced digital health    Foreign, housing ministers discuss Egypt's role in African development push    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Egypt, Syria press for IAEA resolution against Israel
Published in Daily News Egypt on 20 - 09 - 2007

VIENNA: Egypt and Syria urged the UN nuclear watchdog on Wednesday to pass a resolution condemning Israel for possessing nuclear weapons.
Israel insisted there was no basis for the resolution, scheduled to be presented on Thursday, and called upon the other member states of the watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to reject the proposal.
Egyptian ambassador Ihab Fawzy said the IAEA must pass the resolution against Israel to show it is committed to the principles and declared stances regarding peace, stability and security in the Middle East region.
Syrian ambassador Ibrahim Othman told the IAEA general conference that Arab countries will with greater determination... present to this conference a draft resolution for its adoption.
Israel s policy is one of nuclear ambiguity , neither confirming nor denying it has nuclear weapons even if, in an apparent blunder, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert appeared to imply late last year that his country does in fact have the bomb.
The Arab states insist, however, that the Jewish state does have such weapons and is a danger to peace and stability in the Middle East.
Traditionally at the IAEA s general conference, Arab states introduce a resolution on the Israeli nuclear threat but in the face of strong Western opposition, they withdraw the text.
It is then postponed to the following year in return for Israel agreeing to a call for a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East.
On Wednesday, however, the Egyptian and Syrian ambassadors signaled that their patience was wearing thin.
The fact that many UN and IAEA resolutions with regard to Israel s nuclear capabilities are not carried out increases the frustration of the Arab peoples and threatens an arms race that could also threaten the peace and security of the region and the world, said Syrian ambassador Othman.
He complained that Israel was the only country in the Middle East to have nuclear weapons and nuclear capabilities which are not under international control.
It was therefore a legitimate concern to ask Israel to join the other countries in the NPT (the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty), Othman said.
The Jewish state s steadfast refusal to put its nuclear facilities under international control constituted a danger to peace in the region and internationally, he argued.
Syria supports setting up a nuclear weapons-free zone in the Middle East and expresses its deep anxiety regarding the obstacle that Israel places to setting up such an area, Othman said.
Israel s intransigent attitude has brought great harm to the credibility and the internationality of the NPT , Othman said.
The chief of Israel s atomic energy commission, Gideon Frank, rejected the criticism. He said Israel remained committed to a vision of the Middle East developing into a zone free of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons.
Yet, in the Middle East... such a noble goal cannot be advanced out of context, Frank argued.
A nuclear weapons-free zone could only emerge if there were a fundamental transformation of the regional political-strategic environment through a gradual process of building mutual trust and reconciliation, followed by more modest arms control measures, Frank said.
So far, such a transformation has eluded the Middle East.
Frank said that many alarming proliferation developments in the Middle East have occurred in recent years. None of these involved Israel. But all of them challenge our security.
There was no basis for the resolution against Israel. Its sponsors are motivated by extraneous considerations, he said. Agence France-Presse


Clic here to read the story from its source.