BRUSSELS, Jan 12 (AFP) - The European Union resumed talks on a trade accord with Iran Wednesday, 18 months after they were suspended due to concerns about Tehran's nuclear plans, the European Commission said.
The negotiations on a trade and cooperation agreement were restarted after the Islamic state agreed to suspend uranium enrichment in an accord thrashed out following intense pressure, notably from the United States.
But the resumption was clouded by a reported announcement from Tehran that Iran plans to resume uranium enrichment soon.
Tensions also edged up with an Iranian warning that it would not allow UN nuclear inspectors to "spy" on a suspect military site which the United States claims may be involved in covert nuclear weapons activities.
In parallel with the EU-Iran trade talks, the EU also is to resume talks this week on key areas of political concern, notably human rights and weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
"The resumption ... is a clear signal of our wish to work with Iran," said EU external relations chief Benita Ferrero-Waldner ahead of the talks with a 12-person Tehran delegation headed by a senior foreign ministry official.
The Iran-EU trade talks, which were launched in December 2002, were suspended in mid-2003 amid mounting tensions, particularly over Tehran's refusal to allow snap inspections of its nuclear facilities.
The resumption follows the confirmation of Iran's suspension of its uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities by the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
But tension remains notably because Tehran has agreed to maintain the suspension of its uranium enrichment activities only as long as the EU trade talks continue.
This agreement was clouded by reported comments by top Iranian nuclear negotiator Hasan Rowhani saying that Tehran will soon resume uranium enrichment under the supervision of the UN nuclear watchdog
"Suspension of enrichment is for a limited period to win the confidence of the international community," Rowhani was quoted as saying by the student news agency ISNA.
Meanwhile Hossein Mousavian, the spokesman for Iran's nuclear negotiations team, warned the IAEA against spying.
"We are watchful. We have allowed inspections into our military installations but we will not allow any espionage or the theft of information from our military sites," he aid in remarks carried by the Mehr news agency.
Iran maintains that its nuclear program is strictly civilian and peaceful and that it is not developing atomic weapons.
But the United States wants the IAEA to take Iran to the United Nations Security Council for possible sanctions for what Washington says is a covert nuclear weapons program.
The EU executive branch underlined that the trade talks, which are expected to involve negotiating sessions roughly every two months, are aimed at agreeing a "first generation" trade accord with the Tehran government.
Wednesday's start of the trade talks will be followed Thursday by the resumption of discussions on human rights, regional security, terrorism and proliferation of WMDs.
And EU officials have made it clear that, while there is no direct link between the two sets of talks, problems in key areas of concern could lead to a new suspension of dialogue.
This could include any review of the IAEA's position. "If there was a substantial change in the assessment of the IAEA, we would have to consider what the implications would be for the negotiations," said one official.
01/12/2005 17:35 GMT - AFP