Iran warns of response to nuke sanctions

(AP)
Updated: 2006-10-31 08:42

"We do advise Britain not to squirm and not to do childish activities concerning the resolution. Iran's nation has stood up and will not let you achieve anything except humiliation," he added.

His speech was delivered after Iran officially confirmed on Friday that it has doubled its uranium enrichment capacity.

On Monday, ElBaradei said that the IAEA was "unable at this stage to confirm the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program which, obviously, is a matter of serious concern."

ElBaradei referred to his earlier report to the Security Council verifying that Iran had ignored the Aug. 31 deadline to halt uranium enrichment.

The UN nuclear watchdog had not been able to "make progress resolving the outstanding issues - issues that require certain transparency measures on the part of Iran," ElBaradei said.

The Iranians have insisted on their right to pursue a peaceful atomic energy program as a member of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

Iran's deputy UN Ambassador Mehdi Danesh-Yazdi criticized the "dangerous trend" where countries outside the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty face no pressure to join and acquire large stockpiles of nuclear weapons. He singled out

Israel, accusing it of leading "a masquerade of lies and deception against Iran's peaceful nuclear program."

Iran wants all nuclear weapons eliminated but in the interim the international community should take "all necessary steps to ensure universality of the non-proliferation regime," he told the UN General Assembly.

At the same time, Danesh-Yazdi said, Iran has a right under the NPT to nuclear technology and is ready to resume negotiations with the six key powers that proposed a package of incentives to assure them of the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program. But he made no mention of suspending uranium enrichment - a key demand of Britain, France, Germany, the US, Russia and China for resuming negotiations.


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