President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned on Monday that Iran will respond to any action against its nuclear activities amid growing signs of a consensus on United Nations Security Council sanctions against Iran.
”From now on, considering your insistence on confronting the Iranian nation, we consider this move of yours as hostile and will act accordingly,” Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying by the ISNA news agency.
”Britain and the United States should know that the Iranian nation will reach the zenith of nuclear technology without [paying] the slightest price and conquer this zenith with pride,” the defiant president said.
Tehran has consistently refused to accept international demands to halt its controversial enrichment of uranium. The West fears this could be diverted to developing nuclear weapons, but Iran insists it is for energy purposes only.
The debate over how to punish Iran for its refusal was scheduled to resume in New York on Monday with Western diplomats confident that the UN Security Council will approve targeted sanctions against Tehran by Christmas.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov welcomed on Monday an amended draft UN resolution targeting Iran’s nuclear programme, saying it was now based on ”Russia’s proposals”, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.
”The draft resolution differs from the version worked out originally and contains changes based on Russia’s proposals, which take into account the need to push Iran to sit at the negotiating table,” Lavrov was quoted as saying.
The head of Russia’s nuclear agency Sergei Kiriyenko, visiting Tehran, stressed that Iran’s nuclear issue must be settled by ”diplomacy” while Iran should also work to relieve international worries.
”Every country, including the Islamic republic, has the right to develop a peaceful nuclear programme, but at the same time the concerns of the international community should be removed,” he told reporters.
”There should be flexibility,” he said, noting that ”Russia’s stance has not changed”.
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said after talks with Kiriyenko that Tehran was counting on Moscow, ”whose stance is different from others”, to help resolve the nuclear showdown. — AFP
