UN weapons inspectors are stepping up efforts to get Iraqi scientists out of the country to give details on Iraq's weapons programmes, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said today.
IAEA chief Mr Mohamed ElBaradei said weapons inspectors had started privately talking to Iraqi experts and were trying to identify the scientists who wanted to leave.
"We're now I think in the process of interviewing people inside Iraq in private. This is something new," Mr ElBaradei told CNN television.
"We have now the authority to interview people in private inside Iraq. But we're also working on the practical arrangements to take people out of Iraq.
The IAEA chief said the agency was in "intense" talks with several countries to arrange safe passage for those experts who need it.
The United States has been pressing for UN experts to focus more efforts on bringing scientists out of Iraq, although until now the United Nations has resisted the pressure, arguing the plan would be difficult to implement.
Washington says it believes that the scientists interviews may be the best way to find out the state of Iraq's banned chemical, biological and nuclear weapons programs.
US Secretary of State Colin Powell late last week renewed demands about interviewing scientists, after accusing Baghdad of being in "material breach" of its international disarmament obligations.
Under Security Council Resolution 1441, UN inspectors can take Iraqi scientists and members of their families outside the country for questioning - without possible intimidation on the part of Iraqi authorities - on their role in arms development.
AFP