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| Chief Negotiator: Iran Never Wants to Make Nuclear Bombs |
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Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani reiterated on Monday that the Islamic republic never wanted to make nuclear bombs, the official IRNA news agency reported. "As we have already declared Iran never wants to produce nuclear bombs," he told reporters at his joint press conference with visiting head of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution of Iraq (SCIRI) Abd al-Aziz al-Hakim. Larijani, who is also secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, stressed that Iran's nuclear program is civilian and it is very vital for the country to produce nuclear energy. "Those who seek to proliferate nuclear weapons never let International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors to monitor their nuclear sites," he said. He underlined that Iran's nuclear standoff with the West would be resolved through negotiations and such negotiations could be fruitful. Meanwhile, Larijani confirmed that he will attend a major annual security conference to be held in German city of Munich this weekend, but dismissed the prospect of any talks with US officials. The new US Defense Secretary Robert Gates will lead a US delegation to attend conference. For his part, Hakim said that political debates between Iran and the United States will be most beneficial to the entire Middle East region. "Such talks are of great significance considering the regional situation and that all Iraqi officials believe the talks are necessary," Hakim said. The United States has persistently accused Iran of supporting the Iraqi insurgents to fight with coalition forces since the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime in 2003, but Tehran has denied it and said such allegations were US deliberate intervention to the Iran-Iraq ties. Iran, the world's fourth largest oil exporter, also says it needs to enrich uranium as a peaceful, alternative energy source and has the right to do so under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). However, the West has accused Iran of trying to produce nuclear weapons under a civilian cover, a charge denied by Tehran. The UN Security Council adopted Resolution 1737 on Dec. 23, 2006, demanding Iran to "suspend all enrichment-related and reprocessing activities, including research and development, and work on all heavy water-related projects." However, Iran has rejected the resolution as an "illegal measure" and vowed to continue the country's nuclear programs. (Xinhua News Agency February 6, 2007) |
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