UN and Iran continue to work toward nuclear cooperation

Wall Street Journal : As the United Nations prepares to resume negotiations with Iran next week, it appears that the country has paused its nuclear program, at least temporarily. While Iran has maintained that its facilities will be used only for peaceful purposes, other countries, including the US, Israel, and Saudi Arabia, worry that Iran may be developing a nuclear weapon. The country has a decades-long history of concealing its nuclear activities. However, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, which reports to the UN, over the past several months Iran has indicated a willingness to cooperate by taking several steps, including dramatically slowing its installment of new centrifuge machines and keeping its stockpile of near-weapons-grade nuclear fuel under the required limit of 250 kilograms. New president Hasan Rouhani’s commitment to increased transparency is being seen as a positive sign for next week’s negotiations.