Iran's declarations on its centrifuge research are consistent with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) findings, the UN nuclear watchdog said in a confidential report on Thursday, according to DPA. Iran's cooperation has been "reactive, rather than proactive," Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the IAEA, said in the report. The cooperation was a "significant step forward," senior UN officials said, but Iran should be more forthcoming and proactive. The nine-page report, released to the Security Council and the IAEA's 35-nation board of governors, is crucial for the UN Security Council's upcoming decision on whether to issue a further, harsher round of sanctions against Iran. Iran in August agreed on a so-called "work-plan" with the IAEA to fully answer all IAEA questions. Iran's declarations on its past work on P1 and P2 centrifuges for uranium enrichment was consistent with Agency findings, the report stated. Iran's "active cooperation and full transparency are indispensable for full and prompt implementation of the work plan," the IAEA said. The IAEA could not make an assessment of present activities, officials said. The UN nuclear watchdog was to continue to "seek corroboration and is continuing to verify the completeness of Iran's declarations," ElBaradei wrote in Thursday's report. "We got answers to the questions asked. It is consistent with our findings. Now we go ahead and see the rest of the story and see if there is consistency," a senior official close to the IAEA said. Iran is still refusing to heed UN Security Council demands to stop uranium enrichment, the IAEA confirmed. As of early November, Iran was operating 18 cascades with 164-centrifuges each at its enrichment plant at Natanz, the IAEA said, confirming Iranian claims. "3,000 centrifuges are running ... but still well below their full capacity," a senior UN official said.
