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IRAN-MARTINO Oct-24-2007 (400 words) xxxi
Vatican official says Iranian nuclear program is OK if peaceful
By John Thavis
Catholic News Service
ROME (CNS) -- A leading Vatican official expressed support for the development of a nuclear energy program in Iran, as long as it serves peaceful purposes.
"Nuclear energy is something that can do good for humanity" -- a principle that "is certainly valid for Iran, too," said Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.
Cardinal Martino spoke Oct. 23 at an interreligious gathering in Naples, Italy. His remarks, reported by the Italian news agency ANSA, came as Iranian and European officials met in Rome to try and resolve growing tensions over Iran's nuclear capability.
Cardinal Martino defended the right to develop a peaceful nuclear energy program, and said any risks of improper use of nuclear technology "depend on the intentions of those who manage the program."
"Anything is possible, in the sense that I can use a knife to cut bread but also to kill someone," he said.
In dealing with such questions at a global level, the cardinal said, the international community must balance the need for peace and security with the necessary development of populations.
The key figures at the Rome meeting were European Union envoy Javier Solana and Iran's new nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili. Solana called the meeting constructive, and Jalili reportedly pledged Iran's commitment to dialogue with the West.
The Iranian government, however, has not changed its basic position: that it will proceed with a uranium enrichment program for what it says are strictly civilian uses. The United States and other countries suspect Iran is using the technology to develop nuclear weapons, and have called for tougher international sanctions against Iran.
Pope Benedict XVI, marking the 50th anniversary of the International Atomic Energy Agency last July, said the Vatican fully approves the agency's efforts to promote the elimination of nuclear weapons and encourage "the peaceful and safe use of nuclear technology for authentic development."
Vatican officials have said privately that on the question of Iran the Holy See supports the position of the IAEA, which has called on Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment program, allow more international inspections and work more cooperatively with the international community to certify that its nuclear development is strictly for peaceful purposes.
The officials have also said the Vatican would view outside military intervention in Iran as morally unjustifiable and impractical.
END
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