TEHRAN – Iran said on Thursday it would not abandon its right to nuclear technology in a defiant statement after Tehran's case was referred back to the U.N. Security Council in its atomic dispute with the West.
Five permanent Security Council members, the United States, France, Britain, Russia, China, plus Germany have backed a package aimed at reining in Iran's atomic work but on Wednesday asked the council to intervene after Tehran failed to reply.
"Our answer to the 'P5+1' package is clear, the Iranian nation abides by international laws and regulations but will not abandon its obvious right to obtain nuclear technology," President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying by state TV.
The package offers Iran economic and diplomatic incentives if it suspends uranium enrichment, a process the West believes Iran is using to develop an atomic bomb. Iran denies the charge and has refused to halt the work, describing it as a right.
"We are trying to investigate the proposed package positively," Ahmadinejad said in comments carried by Iran's Fars news agency, but repeated that Iran would give its final reply by Aug. 22 despite pressure for a swifter response.
France said world powers would propose a U.N. resolution over Iran's nuclear activities that could include sanctions if Iran does not give them a positive response by mid-August.
But Russia and China, which both have commercial interests Iran, are not expected to back tough measures against Iran.
Analysts say Iran, the world's fourth largest oil exporter, may be calculating such divisions mean it is only likely to face modest steps such as travel bans on officials or assets freezes, measures they say Iran may believe it can weather.
"As long as there is no prospect of that unity (among world powers) or sense of serious threat coming from the West, which at the moment there doesn't appear to be, they will not budge on this issue," political analyst Mahmoud Alinejad said.
Disappointed
French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said: "Iran has given no indication that the Iranians are ready to discuss seriously what we have proposed. They have taken no steps to begin negotiations. We are very disappointed by that."
He said the six powers had agreed a two-stage process. The first stage would involve passing a U.N. resolution "in a few days" demanding Iran suspend all sensitive nuclear work.
If Iran responded 'no' in mid-August, he said another resolution would be proposed under Chapter VII of the United Nations charter, which allows for economic sanctions but does not endorse military action.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday the use of force against Iran was "absolutely excluded".
Ahmadinejad said Iran was ready for talks but also repeated threats to review cooperation with the U.N. watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and review adherence to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
"The Iranian nation has worked in the framework of IAEA regulations and NPT. But if we come to the conclusion that they (the West) are not sincere, we will revise our policies," he was quoted as saying by state TV.
Iran, which insists its nuclear ambitions are civilian, has halted short-notice inspections by the IAEA, although the U.N. inspectors still make routine visits to Iranian nuclear sites.
The six nations had hoped the package would persuade Tehran to abandon its enrichment programme and wanted a clear response before this weekend's Group of Eight industrialised nations summit in Russia. But the ministers from the group, who met in Paris, said they were not prepared to let Tehran drag its feet.
