WASHINGTON, April 22: US President George Bush praised diplomatic pressure on Iran to give up its nuclear programmes and said that Tehran's development of an atomic weapon would be "intolerable".
"The development of a nuclear weapon in Iran is intolerable, and a programme is intolerable, otherwise they will be dealt with, starting through the United Nations," he said in remarks to newspaper editors and publishers.
"The Iranians need to feel the pressure from the world that any nuclear weapons programme will be uniformly condemned. It's essential that they hear that message," he said.
The United States has been skeptical of Tehran's pledges to improve its cooperation and transparency with the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, saying Iran had previously reneged on similar vows.
"It is intolerable for the peace and the stability in the Middle East if they get a nuclear weapon especially when their stated objective is the destruction of Israel," said Mr Bush.
"The foreign ministers of Great Britain, France and Germany have interceded on behalf of the civilized world to talk plainly to the Iranians," the president told the Newspaper Association of America's annual convention.
"My job is to make sure that they speak as plainly as possible to the Iranians and that they made absolutely clear that the development of a nuclear weapon in Iran is intolerable and a programme is intolerable," he said.
Iran last year was severely reprimanded by the IAEA for failing to reveal a full account of its nuclear activities including its research into second generation P2 centrifuges that are capable of enriching uranium to weapons grade.
But last December, Iran bowed to international pressure by signing up to an additional protocol to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), allowing a tougher IAEA probe. "The signing of the additional protocol was a positive element," said Mr Bush, who called the Islamic republic's leaders "a tough crowd to negotiate with."
IRAN'S PLEDGE: In London, the Iranian foreign minister pledged on Thursday to continue cooperation with the United Nations and Europe on the nuclear programme and said Tehran would meet its partners again to move the process forward.
"We have been working very hard with our collaborators in Europe, the three countries, to work out the nuclear issue in Iran and big steps have been taken so far," Kamal Kharazi told reporters after meeting British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw. Britain, along with France and Germany, has been instrumental in persuading Iran to open up its nuclear programme to international scrutiny. -Reuters
