TEHRAN, Jan 22: Iran on Sunday denounced next month’s emergency meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog as “political” but said it was not worried if the crisis over its disputed atomic drive ended up at the Security Council. “We are not worried by the Security Council, but it is the wrong method,” foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters.
“An emergency meeting of the board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)is not necessary. It is a political act,” he added.
Iran faces the threat of being referred to New York for resuming sensitive nuclear fuel research work that the Western powers and Israel fear would give Iran the know-how to build a bomb.
Tehran insists such work is legal given it has signed the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and has branded atomic weapons “un-Islamic” — but a lengthy IAEA probe has yet to confirm the claimed civilian nature of the programme and has uncovered suspect activities.
Britain, France and Germany have called an urgent meeting of the IAEA’s 35-nation board for Feb 2. The meeting is widely expected to result in Iran’s case being referred to the Security Council, despite the reluctance of Russia and China.
“It is clear in advance that the result of a meeting that takes place under the pressure of certain countries will be political,” Asefi said, complaining that “we have asked the Europeans to resume negotiations but, lacking any logic, they have not.”
A week ago Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also vowed his country would not back down over sensitive nuclear work, even if ordered to do so by the Security Council.—AFP
