Dec 14, 2010 03:45 pm
Source: BY JOHN LYONS, THE AUSTRALIAN
Category: Nuclear Security/Nonproliferation
FOREIGN Minister Kevin Rudd has arrived in Israel with a blunt message: allow international inspectors into your nuclear facility. He has also called on Israel to stop building in Jewish settlements in both the West Bank and East Jerusalem. In an interview with The Australian before he arrived in Israel last night, Mr Rudd staked out strong positions on both issues. While many countries are calling on Israel to halt settlement growth, it is Mr Rudd's strong stance on Israel's nuclear facility that is bound to be most controversial in Israel. Israel refuses to confirm that it even has nuclear weapons, but foreign intelligence analysts familiar with the program believe Israel has just over 200 nuclear warheads at its facility in Dimona in southern Israel.
Israeli officials have confirmed to The Australian that Israel has nuclear weapons but will not place a figure on them. Mr Rudd told The Australian: "Our view has been consistent for a long period of time, and that is that all states in the region should adhere to the NPT, and that includes Israel." But it is what he added next by referring to International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors that has caught Israeli officials by surprise: "And therefore their nuclear facility should be subject to IAEA inspection."
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