The UN atomic watchdog said Monday it has been unable to make any progress in its two-year investigation into alleged illicit nuclear activities in Syria as Damascus is still refusing to cooperate.
In a restricted five-page report obtained by AFP, the International Atomic Energy Agency complained that Syria "has not cooperated with the agency since June 2008 in connection with the unresolved issues related to the Dair Alzour site and the other three locations allegedly functionally related to it.
"As a consequence, the agency has not been able to make progress towards resolving the outstanding issues related to those sites."
The United States accuses Syria of building a covert nuclear reactor at the remote desert site of Dair Alzour with the help of North Korea until it was bombed by Israel in September 2007.
The IAEA has already said that the building bore some of the characteristics of a nuclear facility.
UN inspectors also detected "significant" traces of man-made uranium at that site, as yet unexplained by Damascus.
It has also requested access to three other locations allegedly functionally related to Dair Alzour, but so far to no avail.
Time was pressing, the new report said on Monday.
"With the passage of time, some of the necessary information concerning the Dair Alzour site is further deteriorating or has been lost entirely. After two years of investigations constrained by Syria's lack of cooperation, it is critical that Syria positively engage with the agency on these issues without further delay."
The report is scheduled to be discussed at a meeting of the IAEA's 35-member board of governors at a meeting next week.
Copyright 2010 AFP Global Edition
