Iranian Nuclear Programs Should Not Be Politicized: Spokesman
"Some countries are about to exert pressure and the agency (IAEA) should not let it happen," Asefi told his regular press briefing.
Iran’s readiness to hold dialogue with the UN nuclear agency on the pros and cons of the additional protocol to the NPT demonstrated Iran’s sincerity and goodwill toward the UN nuclear watchdog, Asefi said.
“That Iran has announced its readiness to start negotiations about the additional protocol is an indication of Iran’s transparency and sincerity toward the agency,” the spokesman said.
"If the other side shows goodwill and if the other side has honesty, I don't think it (the additional protocol) is an issue that cannot be solved," he said.
To prove the peaceful nature of its nuclear activities Iran even allowed the IAEA experts to take samples of its nuclear sites in order to end this rumor that Iran has enriched uranium, he said.
Asefi said Iran allowed this beyond its commitments.
The UN watchdog has said in a confidential report that Iran had improved cooperation with it, but there were still questions about weapons-grade uranium found at a site in Iran.
Iran says its nuclear program is purely civilian. It says nuclear facilities are needed to meet booming demand for electricity and so it can keep the country's massive oil and gas reserves for exports.
EU’s Press Spokeswoman, Christina Gallach, also said Saturday that Iran is adopting a clear stance on its nuclear activities.
Iran’s transparency in the nuclear activities would help a stronger relationship with Europe, she said.
Gallach is also an advisor to the EU High Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana.
She said that the meeting with officials of Iran’s Atomic Agency was positive.
Iran’s strong cooperation with the IAEA has drawn the attention of the European delegates, Gallach told the Mehr News Agency.
Iran’s transparency in nuclear activities will alleviate its current critical position in the international arena, she added.
In a meeting with Javier Solana on Saturday President Mohammad Khatami denounced the double-standard policy toward nuclear technology and said Iran will not give in to political uproar.
Khatami said that despite the political uproar created by some powers, Tehran takes the international community's concerns about its nuclear program seriously.
Khatami also said Iran would assure the world that nuclear weapons have no place in Iran's defense policies.
“We are trying to gain the confidence of those who are really concerned about (Iranian nuclear programs), but we will not succumb to this political uproar,” the president assured the top EU official.
Iran is trying to create a democratic government in accordance with religious and cultural criteria which is also scientifically and technologically advanced, Khatami said.
He stated that Iran, as the flag-bearer of peace and the initiator of the idea of dialogue among civilizations, wants a Middle East free of nuclear arms.
Iran has the right to possess nuclear technology and the Iranian nation wants this, the president argued.
The director of the Iranian Atomic Energy Organization (IAEO), Gholam-Reza Aqazadeh, said on Saturday that Iran needs to produce 700 megawatts of electricity by 2021, stressing that Tehran is determined to continue its plans to achieve that goal.
In a meeting with Solana, Aqazadeh said certain countries are trying to use the issue of Iran's signing the additional protocol to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as a political means to stop Iran's nuclear activities.
He said Iran has had numerous contacts with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) over the past year in that connection, stressing that Tehran has left no IAEA question regarding its nuclear activities unanswered.
Aqazadeh regretted that certain countries are trying to portray the contacts as insufficient and said Iran-IAEA cooperation could remove the ambiguities in regard to Iran's nuclear activities.
Solana, for his part, stressed that Iran-IAEA cooperation could calm the political atmosphere surrounding Iran's nuclear energy programs.
He added that Iran must continue its confidence-building measures, stressing that cooperating with the IAEA is the only solution.
The EU official also described his talks with Iranian officials as "very important" and said that the 15-nation bloc wants to expand ties with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Talking to reporters in a joint press conference with Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, Solana said that he had encouraged Iran to sign the additional protocol to the NPT "just like before", noting that he was happy that Tehran had entered talks with the IAEA in that connection.
Solana added that Iran should not expect any favors in return for signing the additional protocol, stressing that Tehran cannot set any preconditions to signing the document.
"Still, the EU is determined to boost ties with Iran, and signing the NPT protocol will expedite this," he said. "We hope things will develop in such a way that the faith, confidence, and trust of the European Union, the IAEA, and international organizations are guaranteed."
Kharrazi also described his talks with Solana as positive and said that the Islamic Republic is determined to promote relations with the EU.
"We told Mr. Solana that Iran has started talks with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on signing the additional protocol to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and that Tehran is ready to expand its transparent cooperation with the agency," he said. MS/HG END MNA