Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator defiant on enrichment

Iran Focus: London, Mar. 01 – Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator struck a defiant cord in Moscow on Wednesday as he insisted that there was no need for the Islamic Republic to suspend uranium enrichment despite repeated requests by the International Atomic Energy Agency and Russia which has a proposal aimed at breaking the impasse. Iran Focus

London, Mar. 01 – Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator struck a defiant cord in Moscow on Wednesday as he insisted that there was no need for the Islamic Republic to suspend uranium enrichment despite repeated requests by the International Atomic Energy Agency and Russia which has a proposal aimed at breaking the impasse.

“Answers to the questions [regarding Iran’s nuclear program”> have no direct relation to the moratorium”, Ali Larijani, secretary general of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, told reporters before his meeting with his Russian counterpart Igor Ivanov, Russia’s Interfax news agency reported.

“A moratorium is necessary when there is something dangerous, but all our activity is transparent”, he said.

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Russian state television that a deal could be reached between Tehran and Moscow to defuse the international standoff over Iran’s suspected nuclear weapons program if the Islamic Republic suspended uranium enrichment, a process which could lead to the development of an atomic bomb.

“I am sure that a compromise that will not allow any violations of the non-proliferation regime is possible. … In order to achieve this, Iran should restore the moratorium and accept Russia’s proposal on creating a uranium enrichment joint venture that will be backed by the IAEA Board of Governors”.

The Russian proposal involves Iran carrying out uranium enrichment exclusively on Russian soil.

Iran has said that any agreement must recognise Iran’s “right” to carry out uranium enrichment on its own soil.