“This is a decision that testifies to Iranian honour. Iran must not be deprived of this legal and legitimate right,” Kharazi told journalists at the end of a visit to Qatar before returning to Tehran.
The text passed on Sunday tells the government “to take action for the country to master civilian nuclear technology, especially in the fuel production cycle” which includes enriching uranium.
Depending on the level of purification, enriched uranium can be used either as fuel for a civilian reactor or as the explosive core of a nuclear bomb.
Kharazi, who also visited Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates during a regional tour, said he discussed the nuclear issue with the emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani as well as regional issues.
If Iran resumes enriching uranium, it would almost certainly mean Tehran being hauled before the UN Security Council to answer about its nuclear activities, which Washington believes are aimed at acquiring an atomic bomb.
Representatives from Germany, Britain and France are to meet Iranian officials on Friday in Paris to try to convince Tehran to renounce uranium enrichment and stave off the threat of being brought before the UN Security Council.
