March 14, 2007	Wednesday	Safar 24, 1428

GENEVA, March 13: Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on Tuesday said Iran was ready to offer “necessary” guarantees on its nuclear programme if the issue was withdrawn from the UN Security Council.

Mr Mottaki said in a speech to the international Conference on Disarmament here that Iran was prepared to make efforts to build confidence if the Security Council’s five permanent members and Germany returned the issue to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

“Let me seize this opportunity, and in order to show our readiness to resolve the issue, underline that if the five plus one countries refer back Iran’s nuclear issues from the Security Council to the IAEA, my country will be prepared to offer necessary guarantees in order to create confidence regarding non-diversion of its nuclear programme,” he said.—AFP