Iranian equipment sources identified

VIENNA, Austria - The U.N. atomic agency has identified Russia, China and Pakistan as among the probable suppliers of equipment Iran used to conduct suspected nuclear weapons programs, diplomats said Thursday.

The unidentified diplomats declined to tell the Associated Press how the agency established the probable origin of the equipment.

Also Thursday, the International Atomic Energy Agency weighed how harshly to censure Tehran for two decades of covert nuclear activities Iran says were aimed at peaceful purposes.

The IAEA's 35-nation board is debating the wording of a resolution that would satisfy U.S. calls for strong condemnation of Iran's past coverups and European desires to keep Iran cooperating by focusing on its recent openness.

Mohamed ElBaradei, the IAEA director-general, said agency delegates were discussing a "quite strong" resolution. The talks, which broke off Thursday after less than two hours, are to continue today.

While Iran has acknowledged nearly two decades of concealment, it has recently begun cooperating with the agency in response to international pressure. To that end, it has suspended uranium enrichment - an activity that has raised U.S. suspicions of a nuclear weapons agenda.

Iran says traces of weapons-grade highly enriched uranium traces were imported on material it bought abroad, but it can't identify the countries because it bought the equipment from third parties.

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