Obama warns Mugabe
United States President Barrack Obama’s administration has warned President Robert Mugabe’s government could face international penalties if it defies a United Nations Security Council resolution by helping Iran acquire uranium.
State Department spokesperson Philip Crowley said the US had taken note of reports attributed to Zimbabwe’s Foreign Affairs minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi which called the broad sanctions on Iran “unfair and hypocritical”.
Crowley said there were potential international penalties, “although obviously, Zimbabwe has its own issues with the international community, including the United States.
“There are ramifications for countries that decline to observe their international obligations under UN Security Council resolutions,” Crowley said.
“I mean, what we are indicating here is that it’s incumbent upon Zimbabwe to heed its own obligations under the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty.”
Mumbengegwi reportedly said Zimbabwe was planning to cooperate with Iran on uranium mining. He said the sanctions, which prohibit UN member states from providing Iran with raw materials that it could use to make a nuclear weapon, were unfair.
The UN imposed sanctions on Iran last year after it refused to halt uranium enrichment.
“Zimbabwe has rich uranium reserves, but is faced with a shortage of funds and does not possess the technical knowledge and equipment needed for extracting rich uranium ores,” Mumbengegwi said.
“If we can work together on uranium mining, it will improve the economic situation of both countries,” he said.
Zimbabwe is believed to have uranium deposits estimated at 455 000 tonnes at Kanyemba, north of Harare.
Mumbengegwi also said Zimbabwe and Iran could cooperate in the energy sector, especially in the construction of oil refineries.
But the US warned if Zimbabwe helped Iran’s nuclear programme that would be in defiance of UN sanctions and a global arms treaty.
“The Foreign minister of Zimbabwe is entitled to his opinion, but the government of Zimbabwe is still bound by its commitments to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” Crowley said during a media briefing at the White House on Tuesday.
Crowley said working with Iran on uranium extraction violated international non-proliferation obligations and posed a threat to international security.
“Such activity violates obligations contained in UN Security Council Resolutions 1737 and 1929,” he said.
The US said this was part of an ongoing effort by Iran to escape “its growing isolation” by offering to bolster trade and other economic ties with receptive governments, such as Zimbabwe.
Asked whether the US had any evidence that Zimbabwe was getting uranium to Iran, Crowley said: “I don’t know that we have any evidence that there are any operational uranium mines in Zimbabwe. But certainly, we have ongoing concerns about the behaviour of Zimbabwe, its own human rights abuses. This is a ‘it would be quite a match for Iran and Zimbabwe to cooperate’.”
The US, which has led international efforts to rein in Iran’s nuclear programme, has also accused President Mugabe’s government of human rights abuses and of rigging elections since 2000.
The US and the European Union imposed sanctions on Zimbabwean state firms and travel restrictions on President Mugabe and his lieutenants.
Foreign Affairs permanent secretary Joey Bimha refused to comment, referring all enquiries to Mumbengegwi.
The minister was not immediately available.
Crowley said there were potential international penalties, “although obviously, Zimbabwe has its own issues with the international community, including the United States.
“There are ramifications for countries that decline to observe their international obligations under UN Security Council resolutions,” Crowley said.
“I mean, what we are indicating here is that it’s incumbent upon Zimbabwe to heed its own obligations under the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty.”
Mumbengegwi reportedly said Zimbabwe was planning to cooperate with Iran on uranium mining. He said the sanctions, which prohibit UN member states from providing Iran with raw materials that it could use to make a nuclear weapon, were unfair.
The UN imposed sanctions on Iran last year after it refused to halt uranium enrichment.
“Zimbabwe has rich uranium reserves, but is faced with a shortage of funds and does not possess the technical knowledge and equipment needed for extracting rich uranium ores,” Mumbengegwi said.
“If we can work together on uranium mining, it will improve the economic situation of both countries,” he said.
Zimbabwe is believed to have uranium deposits estimated at 455 000 tonnes at Kanyemba, north of Harare.
Mumbengegwi also said Zimbabwe and Iran could cooperate in the energy sector, especially in the construction of oil refineries.
But the US warned if Zimbabwe helped Iran’s nuclear programme that would be in defiance of UN sanctions and a global arms treaty.
“The Foreign minister of Zimbabwe is entitled to his opinion, but the government of Zimbabwe is still bound by its commitments to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” Crowley said during a media briefing at the White House on Tuesday.
Crowley said working with Iran on uranium extraction violated international non-proliferation obligations and posed a threat to international security.
“Such activity violates obligations contained in UN Security Council Resolutions 1737 and 1929,” he said.
The US said this was part of an ongoing effort by Iran to escape “its growing isolation” by offering to bolster trade and other economic ties with receptive governments, such as Zimbabwe.
Asked whether the US had any evidence that Zimbabwe was getting uranium to Iran, Crowley said: “I don’t know that we have any evidence that there are any operational uranium mines in Zimbabwe. But certainly, we have ongoing concerns about the behaviour of Zimbabwe, its own human rights abuses. This is a ‘it would be quite a match for Iran and Zimbabwe to cooperate’.”
The US, which has led international efforts to rein in Iran’s nuclear programme, has also accused President Mugabe’s government of human rights abuses and of rigging elections since 2000.
The US and the European Union imposed sanctions on Zimbabwean state firms and travel restrictions on President Mugabe and his lieutenants.
Foreign Affairs permanent secretary Joey Bimha refused to comment, referring all enquiries to Mumbengegwi.
The minister was not immediately available.
