Iran to send uranium to Turkey in nuclear fuel deal

Iran agreed yesterday to ship much of its low enriched uranium abroad in a nuclear fuel swap deal backed by Turkey and Brazil but greeted sceptically by world powers seeking new sanctions against Teheran.

The accord, which commits Iran to depositing 1,200 kilograms of low enriched uranium (LEU) in Turkey in return for fuel for a research reactor, was signed by the foreign ministers of Iran, Turkey and Brazil.

Even after signing the accord Teheran insisted it will continue enriching uranium, a process which the West fears hides a covert nuclear weapons programme.

Iran, already under three sets of UN sanctions for refusing to halt uranium enrichment, touted Monday's deal as a goodwill measure designed to pave the way for a resumption of talks with world powers.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a driving force behind the deal, said in a radio interview: "Diplomacy emerged victorious today. It showed that it is possible to build peace and development with dialogue."

Turkey said it made the need for further sanctions redundant.

But Western diplomats close to the UN nuclear watchdog, which has been probing Iran's nuclear programme for years, said the deal did not remove the case for further sanctions over Teheran's refusal to halt enrichment. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, meanwhile, welcomed the agreement but said further talks were needed.