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Iran partially suspends cooperation with U.N.
Iranian Cabinet refrains from informing IAEA of nuclear program
Issue date: 3/26/07 Section: News
TEHRAN (AP) - Iran announced Sunday that it was partially suspending cooperation with the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, citing the "illegal and bullying" U.N. Security Council sanctions imposed on the country for its refusal to stop enriching uranium.
Gholam Hossein Elham, a government spokesman, told state television that the suspension would "continue until Iran's nuclear case is referred back to the IAEA from the U.N. Security Council."
In New York, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said "a few select countries don't have the right to abuse the Security Council."
"The Security Council has to be aware of its own position and status. Actions that are illegal, unwarranted and unjustified will reduce the credibility of the Security Council," he said in Persian through a translator.
He said Iran has repeatedly sought negotiations with the powers that drafted the resolution against the Islamic republic the five permanent council members - the U.S., Britain, France, Russia and China - and Germany. But he accused those countries of lacking the political will to reach a breakthrough.
"If this political will existed, the other side wouldn't have imposed preconditions on the talks," Mottaki said, referring to demands by the U.S. and its allies that Iran first halt enrichment before they engage in negotiations on its nuclear program.
He said the world has two options to proceed on the nuclear issue: continued negotiations or confrontation. "Choosing the path of confrontation...will have its own consequences," he said without elaborating.
Elham said the Iranian Cabinet decided Sunday to suspend "code 1-3 of minor arrangements of the safeguards" with the International Atomic Energy Agency. The provision members were to inform the IAEA of any new steps and decisions made concerning a country's nuclear program.
The Security Council sanctions, which send a strong message that Iran's defiance will leave it increasingly isolated and warn of even harsher penalties ahead, were immediately rejected by Iran, which said it had no intention of suspending its enrichment program.
Gholam Hossein Elham, a government spokesman, told state television that the suspension would "continue until Iran's nuclear case is referred back to the IAEA from the U.N. Security Council."
In New York, Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said "a few select countries don't have the right to abuse the Security Council."
"The Security Council has to be aware of its own position and status. Actions that are illegal, unwarranted and unjustified will reduce the credibility of the Security Council," he said in Persian through a translator.
He said Iran has repeatedly sought negotiations with the powers that drafted the resolution against the Islamic republic the five permanent council members - the U.S., Britain, France, Russia and China - and Germany. But he accused those countries of lacking the political will to reach a breakthrough.
"If this political will existed, the other side wouldn't have imposed preconditions on the talks," Mottaki said, referring to demands by the U.S. and its allies that Iran first halt enrichment before they engage in negotiations on its nuclear program.
He said the world has two options to proceed on the nuclear issue: continued negotiations or confrontation. "Choosing the path of confrontation...will have its own consequences," he said without elaborating.
Elham said the Iranian Cabinet decided Sunday to suspend "code 1-3 of minor arrangements of the safeguards" with the International Atomic Energy Agency. The provision members were to inform the IAEA of any new steps and decisions made concerning a country's nuclear program.
The Security Council sanctions, which send a strong message that Iran's defiance will leave it increasingly isolated and warn of even harsher penalties ahead, were immediately rejected by Iran, which said it had no intention of suspending its enrichment program.
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