(6 Jul 2004) SHOTLIST
1. Head of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Mohamed ElBaradei walking inside Dan Hotel, Tel Aviv
2. SOUNDBITE (English): Mohamed ElBaradei, Head of International Atomic Energy Agency:
"I will have to tell you at the end of the visit. I hope that we will have good consultation, good cooperation. I obviously don't have a magic wand nor do I have the power of prescription but I will express the way I see things. I have the power of recommending, of advising and I have no reason to believe that I will not have an open and frank discussion. I think I look forward to an open dialogue. If anything we need to strengthen security in the Middle East and I think everybody understands that. However these are issues that touch on very deeply held beliefs and we need to understand the different viewpoints of Israel and of the other parties in the Middle East and that's exactly what I'm asked to do. Consult with all the parties and see how we can move things forward."
3. ElBaradei walking into elevator followed by press
STORYLINE
The head of the UN atomic watchdog agency, Mohamed ElBaradei, arrived for a two-day visit to Israel on Tuesday and was expected to press for at least a tacit acknowledgment by the Jewish nation that it has nuclear weapons.
However, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has said he would not budge from his country's traditional "no show, no tell" policy.
Israel is widely believed to have a nuclear arsenal, but does not comment directly on its capacity.
Upon his arrival in Israel, ElBaradei said that the security in the Middle East needs to be strengthened.
"However these are issues that touch on very deeply held beliefs and we need to understand the different viewpoints of Israel and of the other parties in the Middle East", he said.
Ahead of the trip ElBaradei said that Israel should start talking seriously about a Middle East free of nuclear arms, whether or not it owes up to owning them.
Earlier this year, ElBaradei condemned the imbalance caused in the Middle East because of "Israel sitting on nuclear weapons".
Sharon plans to take ElBaradei on a helicopter tour over Israel, the office of the International Atomic Energy Agency said.
Israel often gives such tours to dignitaries to illustrate the country's small size and security concerns in a volatile Mideast.
An IAEA spokesman linked ElBaradei's visit to the need "for a strategic dialogue at nuclear issues, aimed at building up ... mutual confidence and, in the long run, making the region free of weapons of mass destruction".
Reflecting Israel's continued policy of keeping the agency at arm's length, senior diplomats familiar with the Vienna-based IAEA said ElBaradei would not be visiting Dimona, the nuclear facility in the Negev Desert thought to be at the heart of Israel's weapons programme.
ElBaradei was to meet Sharon and other senior officials.
Still, Israeli analysts warned against even low expectations.
Evidence that Israel has nuclear arms is overwhelming, much of it based on details and pictures leaked in 1986 by Israeli nuclear technician Mordechai Vanunu, as well as by other leaks, research and statements made by Israeli leaders.
Israel's doctrine of "nuclear ambiguity" - never formally confirming or denying that it has such weapons - is meant to keep the Islamic world from considering an annihilating attack while denying it the rationale for developing its own nuclear deterrent.
Still, Israel has left few footprints in developing a weapons programme.
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