WASHINGTON - The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency said Sunday he had no evidence Iran was working actively to build nuclear weapons and expressed concern that escalating rhetoric from the U.S. could bring disaster.
"We have information that there has been maybe some studies about possible weaponization," said Mohamed ElBaradei, who leads the International Atomic Energy Agency. "That's why we have said that we cannot give Iran a pass right now, because there is still a lot of question marks.
"But have we seen Iran having the nuclear material that can readily be used into a weapon? No.Have we seen an active weaponization program? No."
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice accused Iran this month of "lying" about the aim of its nuclear program. She said there is no doubt Tehran wants the capability to produce nuclear weapons and has deceived the atomic agency about its intentions.
Vice President Dick Cheney has raised the prospect of "serious consequences" if Iran were found to be working toward developing a nuclear weapon. Last week, the Bush administration announced harsh penalties against the Iranian military and state-owned banking systems in hopes of raising pressure on the world financial system to cut ties with Tehran.
ElBaradei said on CNN's Late Edition he was worried about the growing rhetoric from the U.S., which he noted focused on Iran's purported intentions to build a nuclear weapon rather than evidence the country was actively doing so. If there is actual evidence, ElBaradei said he would welcome seeing it.
"I'm very much concerned about confrontation, building confrontation, because that would lead absolutely to a disaster. I see no military solution. The only durable solution is through negotiation and inspection," he said.
"My fear is that if we continue to escalate from both sides that we will end up into a precipice, we will end up into an abyss. As I said, the Middle East is in a total mess, to say the least. And we cannot add fuel to the fire," ElBaradei added.
Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, agreed that the current "hot rhetoric" from the U.S. could prove dangerous.
"We ought to make it clear that there's always a military option if Iran goes nuclear, but that we ought to just speak more softly because these hot words that are coming out of the administration, this hot rhetoric plays right into the hands of the fanatics in Iran," Levin, D-Mich., said on CBS' Face the Nation.
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C .,said strong action might be needed because he does not believe the United Nations adequately has kept Iran in check.
"I think the United Nations' efforts to sanction Iran have been pitiful because of Russia and China vetoing a resolution. The European Union has some sanctions. They're fairly weak," Graham said on Face the Nation.
"So in this regard, I agree with the following, that the diplomatic efforts to control Iran need to continue. They need to be more robust, but we're sending mixed signals," he said.
ElBaradei also said Israel had "no business" bombing Syria and lacks "any evidence at all" that its target was a nuclear facility.
He called the Sept. 6 raid "very distressful" and a violation of U.N. rules that require member nations to alert investigators if there is evidence of nuclear activity.
"To bomb first and then ask questions later, I think it undermines the system and it doesn't lead to any solution," ElBaradei said.
Israeli officials have indirectly acknowledged the raid, while refusing to discuss the details. North Korea denied newspaper reports that it might be helping Syria build a nuclear plant. Satellite photographs taken of the site since the attack show it cleared of all debris.
Syrian officials told ElBaradei that the cluster of buildings targeted by the Israeli air force was a "military facility" and had "nothing to do with nuclear," the atomic energy agency chief said.
Israel has provided no evidence to support a claim that the buildings hit were connected to a nuclear program. The U.N. has purchased its own commercial satellite images of the site and is studying them, ElBaradei said.
"Until today, we have not received information about nuclear-related activities, clandestine nuclear-related activities in Syria," ElBaradei said.
The Israeli air attack was aimed at a partly built atomic reactor site to demonstrate Israel's unwillingness to allow neighboring Syria to possess nuclear weapons, The New York Times reported Oct. 13, citing unidentified U.S. and foreign officials with access to intelligence reports. President Bush and members of his administration have refused to confirm whether the bombing took place or whether the U.S. was consulted beforehand.
Information for this article was contributed by The Associated Press and by Lorraine Woellert of Bloomberg News.
Front Section, Pages 3 on 10/29/2007