For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
October 21, 2003
Remarks by the Press Secretary on Iran
Shangri-La Hotel
Singapore
11:29 P.M. (Local)
Q What's America's position on the news today out of Iran that
it's going to agree with the IAEA protocol?
MR. McCLELLAN: We have been in close contact with the Europeans
all along, so we very much welcome today's efforts by the Europeans to
obtain a commitment from Iran. What is essential now is that Iran
needs to fully comply by signing and implementing additional protocol,
cooperating fully with the IAEA, and taking steps to end its uranium
enrichment and reprocessing activities.
Q So it seems to me as though you're looking at this with some
skepticism. A little bit of optimism, a lot of skepticism.
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, I think the British Foreign Secretary summed
it up well when he said -- he essentially said, what is important now
is that -- not only the words by the Iranians, but the action to fully
implement what their international obligations are.
Q Based on Iran's past behavior, do you have reason to be
skeptical?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, we've always raised serious concerns about
the Iranians, and this is certainly one that is at the top of the
list. And like I said, we've been in close contact with the Europeans
all along, so we very much welcome their efforts to obtain this
commitment today. Now what is essential is for Iran to fully comply
with the IAEA and its non-proliferation obligations.
Q Now, the agreement also stipulates that should Iran fully
comply, or sign the agreement, comply, end its enrichment program, that
it would be open to assistance with a civilian nuclear program. The
White House has always been skeptical of Iran's need to have a civilian
nuclear program. Would you agree to those terms, or are you still of
the mind that Iran shouldn't have a nuclear program if it's sitting on
so much oil?
MR. McCLELLAN: No, we've previously expressed our concerns about
Iran's claims that it needs a nuclear energy program. But again,
what's important here today is that Iran has made a commitment to fully
comply with the IAEA. But what's most important is the implementation
and the action, the follow-through on this.
Q So if it does sign the arrangement, if it does comply and it
does end its enrichment program, would the United States be comfortable
with Iran having a civilian nuclear program?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, again, we very much welcome the efforts by
the Europeans because we've been in close contact with them on this
issue all along. The President was the one who urged the international
community to address this serious concern. Now we are seeing Iran
committing to ending its efforts, and we need to see the action now.
Q What was the President's reaction when he heard the news from
the Foreign Ministers? We only have a few days now until the IAEA
deadline. Was he relieved that they seemed to have struck some
agreement? Was he relieved that he doesn't have to take this to the
U.N.?
MR. McCLELLAN: You actually brought up a good point -- Iran does
need to meet its October deadline, which is the end of this month. And
they do need to follow through on the three steps that I just
mentioned. That's a very important step that needs to be taken.
Q But, again, he sees this as -- if they do this, he sees it as
progress, or he sees today's announcement as progress?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, today's announcement is progress. It was
the President who originally urged action by the international
community to address this issue. The President has made proliferation
of weapons of mass destruction a top priority. It's a serious matter.
And now we're are seeing the fruits borne of our efforts.
Q The President was looking at having to take this to the U.N.
Security Council. Is there some sense of relief at the White House
that you may not need to go through that process now?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, look, we welcome the action by the Europeans
to obtain this commitment today. Now we need to see Iran fully comply
and implement its obligation.
* * *
Q So you know what happened -- the Foreign Ministers of
Germany, France and Britain went to Iran. They got a commitment from
Iran to sign the IAEA protocol. It would avert -- if they make it an
October 31st deadline, the issue might go to the United Nations
Security Council. Crisis averted would you say?
MR. McCLELLAN: Well, again, it will depend on the action by Iran
now. Iran needs to fully comply and implement its international
obligations. It needs to commit to comply with the IAEA fully. And it
needs to abide by its nonproliferation obligations.
Thank you.
END 11:33 P.M. (Local)
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