Iran welcomes amicable, fair ties: Ahmadinejad

ASSALOUYEH, BUSHEHR (IRNA) -- President Mahmud Ahmadinejad here on Thursday said that Iran welcomes friendly and fair relations instead of tension regarding its peaceful nuclear program.

Ahmadinejad was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of Ghadir Urea and Ammonia Petrochemical Complex in Assaluyeh.

He recommended certain bullying powers to ""be a friend to the Iranian nation"" stressing that the time of speaking about war and sanctions has come to an end.

He also advised certain European countries to review their stands asking, ""Until when do you intend to pay the cost of selfishness of an aggressive government from the pocket of your nation?""

""If you want to continue your previous path, we will reciprocate and make a decision,"" he noted.

If the Iranian nation makes a decision, it will materialize it, President Ahmadinejad said urging certain European states supporting the ill-wishers of the Iranian nation, to change their attitude.

He added that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in its report has explicitly announced that Iran's nuclear activities are peaceful. ""If you support our enemy, we will not regard it as a mistake,"" he said.

He stressed that Iran has no concerns over sanctions, saying, ""One of the characteristics of the Iranian nation is that it can quickly change threats to opportunities.""

""You make a mistake if you want to impose sanctions against the Iranian people. We have potential to supply our needs in a short period of time,"" the Iranian president continued.

He further referred to imposing sanctions as ""a ridiculous act"", noting that the U.S. is trying to make European countries impose sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

Elsewhere in his remarks, the president said Iran possesses rich gas resources and can achieve the maximum value added from gas through developing petrochemical complexes.

Underscoring the importance of indigenous petrochemical industry, he said certain countries including Europeans are eager to invest in Iran.

""During the past two years, some 40 billion dollars have been annually invested in oil industry on the average. There is an increasing demand for making investment in Iran even by European countries,"" Ahmadinejad said.

He urged the Iranian nation to develop the country as a national determination with respect to Iran's high potentialities, capabilities and opportunities.

-------------Ahmadinejad visits South Pars phases 17, 18

Ahmadinejad also inspected the construction operation of phases 17 and 18 of South Pars gas field in Assalouyeh on Thursday.

During his inspection tour, the president was briefed on progress in construction operation of the two phases.

Phases 17 and 18 of South Pars will produce 50 million cubic meters of sweet gas for domestic use, 80,000 barrels of gas condensate and 400 tons of sulfur daily. They will also manufacture over one million tons of liquefied gas and ethane every year.

Some 2.7 billion dollars will be invested for construction of the two phases which has been planned for 52 months.

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