HC Deb 21 July 2004 vol 424 cc341-2W
Mr. Rosindell

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what progress has been made with Iran in recent months as regards its nuclear programme. [184238]

Mr. MacShane

The Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) unanimously adopted a Resolution on 18 June calling for Iran to co-operate more actively with IAEA inspectors and to resolve outstanding questions regarding its nuclear programme.

Together with our French and German partners, the Government is urgently engaged in seeking to persuade Iran to re-engage fully with the IAEA, and to honour its commitments made in the Tehran Declaration of 21 October 2003.

We will continue to monitor developments closely.

Mr. Win Griffiths

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what issues were raised at the recent EU/Iran Human Rights Dialogue meeting; and what assessment has been made of the progress being made by Iran on these issues. [185437]

Mr. Rammell

Discussions at the fourth meeting of the EU/Iran Human Rights Dialogue, held in Tehran on 14–16 June, covered a range of human rights issues in Iran. The EU delegation raised particular concerns about Iran's judicial and penal systems, the situation of religious and ethnic minorities, freedom of expression and assembly, discrimination against women and the conduct of this year's Majlis elections. The EU also raised the cases of a number of individuals in Iran. We are deeply disappointed that on many issues of concern there has been little or no progress in recent months.

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