posted February 21, 2005 11:49 AM              

Tuesday 07 September 2004, 0:10 Makka Time, 21:10 GMT

Rohani: Iran will benefit from peaceful nuclear technology



Related:
IAEA: No Iranian nuclear arms plans

Tools:
Email Article
Print Article
Send Your Feedback

The head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council has told Washington to stop threatening the Islamic republic and start talking.

Speaking on state television on Monday, Hasan Rohani said negotiations would resolve the issues that currently surrounded the country's nuclear programme.

"The only way to resolve Iran's nuclear problem is steady dialogue, not putting pressure or threatening us," Rohani said.

The US accuses Iran of secretly working on an atomic bomb and has been pushing for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to report Iran's case to the UN Security Council for possible economic sanctions.

Tehran rejects the charge and says its ambitions are limited to generating electricity from nuclear reactors.

"Iran has never pursued nuclear arms but we are serious about having peaceful nuclear technology," Rohani added.

Enrichment continues

In June, Tehran ended a deal with Britain, France and Germany by resuming the production and testing of nuclear centrifuges.

"We assure the world that our enrichment-related activities are for peaceful purposes," Rohani said.

The EU trio will draft a resolution to be presented to the IAEA's 35-member Board of Governors which will meet on 13 September to discuss Iran's nuclear case.

Iran believes the IAEA would give its nuclear programme a clean bill of health in its September report as Iran has removed the agency's major ambiguities over Tehran's nuclear activities.