VIENNA - China remained open to initiatives on the establishment of an international nuclear fuel bank , a senior Chinese diplomat said here Friday.

"The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA should play an active role in establishing such mechanism, on the prerequisite of maintaining its independence, " said Hu Xiaodi, China's permanent representative and ambassador to the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna.

"China is of the view that the establishment and operation of multilateral mechanism on assurance of nuclear fuel supply involves complex political, economic, technical and legal factors as well as practical interests of all Member States, " Hu told a board meeting of IAEA.

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Referring to an US proposal on the establishment of an IAEA low-enrichment uranium bank, Hu noted that some IAEA Member States still had concerns on that proposal.

"The concerns of relevant states should be taken into full consideration and resolved in order to seek the most extensive support," Hu said.

He also said that while the objective of preventing the proliferation of nuclear weapons should be promoted, Member States' right to peaceful uses of nuclear energy should not be affected.

There have been a number of initiatives to establish nuclear fuel reserve banks in recent years. The US proposal envisions a nuclear fuel bank run by IAEA, to which countries could turn to if their regular supplies were cut.

However, the plan has met opposition from some developing countries. They worry that a nuclear fuel bank could undermine their right to acquire their own nuclear technology for peaceful purposes. Some countries are also concerned with the possibility of fuel supply being controlled by western powers and used for political purposes.