UNITED NATIONS, Feb 1: UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has said that the signatories of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), have the right to develop nuclear energy is conditional on the obligation not to build or acquire nuclear weapons, and to comply with standards set and monitored by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

“Today’s headlines concern Iran –- rightly so, for basic treaty obligations and commitments are at stake,” as he called for a long-term and visionary approach to the problem of nuclear arms proliferation in a speech in London on Tuesday evening.