A top Iranian cleric on Friday denounced a recent presidential
statement by the UN Security Council on Iran's nuclear issue as a
feature of the law of jungle, vowing to defend the country's
nuclear right.
"Nuclear technology and energy are our inalienable right but the
Security Council says Iran should not have this technology. This is
the law of jungle," substitute Friday prayers leader Ahmad Khatami
was quoted by the official IRNA news agency as saying.
The mullah was referring to a statement adopted by the 15-member
Security Council on March 29, which urges Iran to re-suspend all
activities related to uranium enrichment in 30 days.
Khatami also expressed regret that "certain international
organizations and institutions including the Security Council have
been turned into a tool in the hands of bullying powers",
criticizing the western countries for escalating the crisis.
"In nuclear case, enemies are after causing crisis. They gave a
month deadline to Iran to suspend research...The (Iranian) nation
stressed it will stand by the last drop of its blood to obtain its
nuclear right," Khatami asserted.
Commenting on Iran's joint military maneuver held between March
31 and April 6, Khatami said that it "conveyed this message to the
enemies that if they intend to direct the least aggression on the
Islamic system of Iran, the country will slap hard across their
face".
Meanwhile, local media reported that a new team of the
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors arrived in
Iran earlier in the day, kicking off new inspections on Iran's
nuclear facilities.
Iran has said that the IAEA would just be able to carry out
inspection based on the Non-Proliferation Treaty due to Tehran's
halt of implementing the additional protocol.
On Thursday, Iranian Ambassador to the IAEA Ali-Asghar
Soltaniyeh told the German journal "Stern" that Iran's
resumption of uranium enrichment was an irreversible decision,
warning that Tehran "will show reaction if the Security Council
makes decisions which will threaten Iran's security and national
interests".
Iranian Majlis (Parliament) Speaker Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel on
Tuesday rejected the statement as "illegal" and "unfair", saying
"the Security Council, which must keep peace and security, has
turned into a tool for practicing discrimination".
The IAEA handed over the Iranian file to the Security Council on
March 8 based on a previous resolution adopted on February 4 to
report the case to the powerful UN body.
Iran has denounced the involvement of the UN as illegal, vowing
not to give up its legal rights.
The Islamic Republic resumed small-scale uranium enrichment in
retaliation to the IAEA's resolution on February 4.
(Xinhua News Agency April 8, 2006)
