Iran issued a stern warning to United Nations Security Council permanent members and Germany on Tuesday ahead of their talks in Moscow on its nuclear programme, saying no amount of pressure would make it back down.
”The five-plus-one meeting in Moscow is more important for the participating countries than for us because if they do not act wisely and make a mistake, they are the ones who will suffer losses,” foreign ministry spokesperson Hamid Reza Asefi said.
”The five-plus-one participants should bear in mind that whenever the Islamic republic of Iran has been under pressure, the result has been the reverse,” he added, saying Iran expected to be ”talked to with respect and understanding”.
The world powers were to discuss how to keep Iran’s nuclear programme in check following the country’s refusal to comply with a Security Council demand to freeze sensitive uranium enrichment work by April 28.
Russian officials said the talks were private and provided no details on the agenda, though Western diplomats said the meeting of political directors from Britain, France and Germany — the European Union three — along with China, Russia and the United States would take place at a working dinner.
The US made clear ahead of the Moscow meeting that it would continue to argue in favour of early and muscular action by the UN Security Council, on which all the participants except Germany wield veto power.
Washington accuses Tehran of working secretly to build nuclear weapons under cover of an energy programme, a charge Iran denies.
”Sanctions and military attack threats are psychological warfare caused by the Zionist lobbies,” Asefi said. ”US threats are not new. Iran is used to it and has thought of ways to neutralise it. Neither the region nor America have the capacity to attack Iran.” — AFP
