By Tarâné Kaveh

Amid Iran's refusal to succumb to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Board of Governors resolution, which calls on the Tehran government to suspend the construction of its second enrichment facility in Fordo, the United States says the international community's patience is 'running out.'

In recent years, the international community has made several demands of Tehran, one of them being the suspension of its enrichment facilities. Iran, on the other hand, has made its own demands: nuclear fuel for its research facilities and under-construction power plants, and worldwide acknowledgement of its nuclear rights.

Upon taking office US President Barack Obama said that, unlike his predecessors, he would engage Iran in dialogue and find a diplomatic solution to the nuclear issue.

Though he has yet to celebrate his first anniversary in the oval office, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said, "Our patience and that of the international community is limited, and time is running out."

US Ambassador to the IAEA Glyn Davies had earlier said that the international community's "patience is running out," adding that "round after round" of fruitless negotiations could not continue.

It appears that for Mr. Davies the only fruit that counts is the one that ends up on his plate. Iran has been promised nuclear fuel for over 30 years now. Despite being a 10-percent shareholder and hence entitled to the European Gaseous Diffusion Uranium Enrichment Consortium (Eurodif)'s output, Iran has never received enriched uranium from France.

Tehran and Paris have also signed a deal, under which France is obliged to deliver 50 tons of uranium hexafluoride (UF6) to Iran — another obligation France has failed to meet.

According to the Statute of the IAEA and the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Safeguards, the UN nuclear watchdog is obliged "to act as an intermediary for the purposes of securing the performance of services or the supplying of materials, equipment, or facilities by one member of the Agency for another."

Iran as an IAEA member and signatory to the NPT, therefore, is entitled to buy nuclear material through the intermediary of the agency.

While the Obama administration displayed the extent of its patience by extending sanctions against Iran, Tehran has exercised patience through enhancing its cooperation with the IAEA, taking voluntary steps to ensure transparency.

In 2003, Iran voluntarily suspended its nuclear activities as a confidence-building measure. In return, however, the West urged the country to "permanently" halt its nuclear activities.

Although the UN nuclear watchdog has conducted over 25 unannounced visits to Iran's nuclear sites and has confirmed the non-diversion of the country's nuclear drive, world powers continue to build an effigy of an alleged military nuclear program in the country.

In yet another confidence-building measure Iran announced that it was willing to buy — as opposed to domestically enrich — the 19.75 percent-enriched uranium, required by the Tehran research reactor, which produces radioisotopes for cancer patients.

The end result of Iran's cooperation and commitment was yet another resolution against a nation of over 70-million people, which has not carried out an act of aggression against any nation in centuries.

Not surprisingly, Iran's envoy to the IAEA Ali Asghar Soltaniyeh described the resolution as "disappointing," saying it only complemented the past "confidence deficits" caused by the West.

"With this resolution they have discouraged Iran from taking voluntary steps that we have taken on many occasions in the past particularly the recent time. When [the IAEA] Director General [Mohamed ElBaradei] was in Iran in fact we took some voluntary steps, and informing them about this new site Fordo was among those voluntary steps. Because we should have not informed [the agency] at this juncture in fact, we had eighteen months before we were obliged to. Therefore, we will not be committed to any of this even if you wanted to voluntarily cooperate. We will try to confine our activities within the framework of [the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty] NPT comprehensive safeguards. That's what we are going to do," Soltaniyeh said.

The Iranian ambassador to the IAEA hinted that Iran's patience was also running out.

"If they continue to not cooperate and supply the fuel then the [Iranian] government has to look for other options."

But what was it that caused the two sides to reach this point? A proposal, drafted by US President Barack Obama during his visit to Russia was presented to Iran by outgoing IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei on October 19.

The proposal required Iran to ship out 1.2 tons of its 1.5 ton of low enriched uranium (LEU) stockpile to Russia by the end of the year. Russia would then enrich it further to 20 percent and send the stockpile to France for conversion into metal fuel rods, before returning it to Tehran.

Tehran, given its lack of trust for the West, begged to differ and presented a counter-proposal. In it, Tehran suggested keeping the LEU in a room sealed by the IAEA inside the country until the higher-enriched uranium arrives. Under this proposal, the exchange would be completed in two stages — 400 kg of Iran's LEU would be exchanged with 58 kg of 20 percent-enriched uranium in each stage.

And of course the IAEA's response was, it's my way or the highway. Citing the element of "time," which has been running out for the past decade or so, the Board of Governors convened on November 27 to "do something about it!"

Now world powers including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and Russia called on Iran to "take the resolution seriously," dismantle the Fordo enrichment facility, take the "fuel supply offer" and ship out the bulk of its LEU and exercise "patience" in the hopes of receiving some nuclear fuel 15 months later, in order to avoid a "package of consequences."

Well this time around, instead of waiting for the same cycle that has been repeating itself for decades, Iran says it will not pay heed. Tehran believes the UN nuclear watchdog will be the first to face "consequences."

"Rather than hurting Iran, the new resolution will impair the UN nuclear watchdog and Security Council," senior Iranian cleric Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami said on Saturday.

With all parties involved saying that the patience marathon is over, it remains to be seen if the marathon has produced a winner.