TEHRAN, May 30: Iran will not suspend uranium enrichment, the key UN demand in a nuclear row with Tehran, Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani said the day before talks with EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana.
Thursday's meeting between Larijani and Solana, acting on behalf of world powers, will be the first since US and Iranian officials held rare face-to-face discussions in Iraq, although atomic affairs were not on the agenda for the Baghdad meeting.
The United States, which accuses Tehran of seeking to build an atomic bomb, has been leading efforts to isolate Iran over its nuclear programme and also says Iran is stirring up violence in Iraq. Iran denies both charges.
“Suspension is not a solution to Iran's nuclear issue ...
Iran cannot accept suspension,” Larijani told reporters at a Tehran airport before his departure for Madrid, where he will meet Solana.
“We have no conditions and we are ready for constructive talks but we will not accept any preconditions. We are ready to remove concerns over Iran's atomic issue.”
Previous meetings have failed to persuade Tehran to obey UN resolutions demanding it halt enrichment, a process which can be used to make fuel for power stations or bomb material.
“We are ready to hold talks without preconditions, any day, any time, but they (the Europeans) should change their logic and use this opportunity which Iran has created for constructive talks. Previous methods will lead them nowhere,” Larijani said.
DISCUSSING SOLUTIONS: “We are not against discussing such solutions during talks but the ground should be paved for Iran to continue its nuclear work,” Larijani added.
He said Iran was staying within regulations laid down by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The UN watchdog says Iran has to answer questions to clarify its intentions.
The UN Security Council has imposed two sets of sanctions on Iran since December for failing to heed UN demands.
“The nuclear issue and Iraq talks are two separate issues.
Of course, in politics, you cannot separate two issues, it will have some affect,” Larijani said without elaborating.
