(21 Oct 2003)
Tegel Airport, Berlin:
1. Plane arriving
2. Close-up of aircraft door panning to "Luftwaffe" sign
3. German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer walking down the plane and
heading to
the press stand-up
4. SOUNDBITE: (English) Joschka Fisher, German Foreign Minister :
"We had a very frank and difficult negotiations. And of course, we reached
an
agreement and this agreement now must be implemented. This is crucial and I
think it offers an opportunity for Iran and a great opportunity shouldn't be
missed."
5. SOUNDBITE: (English) Joschka Fisher, German Foreign Minister:
"Well of course now the question is to implement the document, now it's in
the
hand of the Agency (International Atomic Energy Agency) in Vienna the
signing of
the protocol, the implementation of the protocol, opening all the files and
making a declaration about the status of the Iranian nuclear programme and
suspending all activities linked with enrichment and reprocessing. These
are the
commitments and I am sure Iran will fully comply with these commitments."
6. Various of press
7. Fischer leaving airport in a car
STORYLINE:
German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer returned to Berlin Tuesday after a breakthrough on Iran's nuclear programme issue.
The joint diplomatic effort of Fischer and his French and British colleagues succeed on obtaining from Iran an agreement to suspend uranium enrichment and give inspectors unrestricted access to its nuclear facilities as demanded
by the U.N. watchdog agency, a step that could ease the standoff over fears Iran is seeking to build nuclear weapons.
On his arrival in Berlin, Fischer said that the agreement "offers an opportunity for Iran and a great opportunity shouldn't be missed."
The German Foreign Minister added that he is convinced that Iran will implement the commitment and will "fully comply with these commitments."
The announcement of the agreement came after weeks of pressure on Iran to meet an Oct. 31 deadline to come clean on its nuclear programme, which Washington believes is part of a process to build a nuclear arsenal. The United States,
which has led the charge for the U.N. Security Council to take action against Tehran, gave a cautious welcome.
If Iran follows through with its promises, it "would be a positive step in the right direction, an White House official said.
Iran, which says its nuclear programmes are only for electricity production, made the commitments after the foreign ministers of Britain, France and Germany came to Iran to press the demands by the U.N. International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA).
Tehran did not say when it would take the steps, though a British official said it would likely be before the deadline.
Iran also agreed to hand over other information long sought by the IAEA, said diplomats in Vienna, where the IAEA is based.
Most importantly, said the diplomats, Iran promised to account for the origin of traces of weapons-grade uranium IAEA inspectors discovered at two facilities, raising alarm bells in Vienna and Washington.
Fischer, Jack Straw of Britain and Dominique de Villepin of France said in a joint statement with Iran after their talks that if the IAEA affirms that Iran has implemented its decisions, that "should enable the immediate situation
to be resolved by the IAEA board."
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