Iran: IAEA resolution not to stop its nuclear program
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Xinhua, November 20, 2011
Iranian officials said Saturday that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) resolution adopted a day earlier will not stop the country's nuclear program.
The board of the IAEA adopted a resolution Friday on Iran's disputed nuclear program, calling for intensified dialogue to find solutions to unresolved issues.
While voicing "deep and increasing concern" over the country's nuclear program, the UN atomic watchdog said it was "essential" for Iran and the IAEA to "intensify their dialogue" aiming at the "urgent" resolution of all outstanding issues.
Esmaeil Kosari, vice-chairman of Iran's Majlis (parliament) National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, told semi- official Fars news agency Saturday that IAEA resolution cannot impede Tehran's progress in "civilian" nuclear program.
"Iran will continue its path powerfully and we will continue our nuclear activities within the framework of the IAEA rules," Kosari was quoted as saying.
Senior Iranian lawmaker Kazem Jalali also said that there will be no turning back in Iran's "peaceful" nuclear pursuit, local daily Tehran Times reported on Saturday.
There is nothing new in Friday's IAEA resolution and the Iranian nation will never pay any attention to such "unfounded allegations" meant to undermine the country's peaceful nuclear energy program, Jalali said.
Further, another Iranian lawmaker Mohammad Karami-Rad said that the United States failed to refer Iran's nuclear case to the UN Security Council (UNSC), the local satellite Press TV reported Saturday.
"The United States undoubtedly failed in its attempts to refer Tehran's nuclear case to the UNSC as Russia and China immediately objected the motion and the Non-Aligned Movement voiced its support for the Islamic Republic's peaceful atomic activities," Karami-Rad said.
"The United States must realize that it cannot isolate Iran by issuing numerous resolutions," and the IAEA resolution against Iran fails to isolate the Islamic Republic due to short of international support, he added.
On Saturday, Iranian lawmaker Javad Jahangirzadeh underlined Washington's failure in winning a consensus vote in favor of "its sponsored resolution against Iran" at the Friday meeting of the IAEA board of governors, saying the U.S. failure shows that it is being pushed into isolation.
"The recent meeting of the IAEA board of governors was definitely a serious failure for the United States and a great victory for global peace," Jahangirzadeh was quoted as saying.
Iranian ambassador to the IAEA Ali-Asghar Soltanieh said Friday that the agency's anti-Iran resolution will not affect Tehran's determination to pursue its work and the report it is based on is "unprofessional, illegal and politicized."
"The United States tried its best, worked closely with Mr. Amano (IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano), trying to have a resolution, a tough resolution, but of course many countries did not accept. Therefore, they were forced to have a so-called mild resolution. The notion of resolution is disappointing, and this is a mistake," Soltanieh said.
Soltanieh said that the agency's resolution would only strengthen Iran's will to continue its nuclear activities.
The European Union (EU) on Friday welcomed the resolution adopted by the board of the IAEA on the Iranian nuclear issue.
"The adoption of this resolution is the result of our determined and united efforts in the G5+1 (Britain, France, Germany, United States, Russia and China) framework," said Catherine Ashton, the EU foreign policy chief, in a statement.
"This resolution is a reaction to the particularly incriminating findings on Iranian military nuclear activities provided in the latest IAEA report," she said.
Cheng Jingye, China's permanent representative and ambassador to the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna, said on Friday that dialogue and cooperation are the right way to solve the Iranian nuclear issue.
China believed it is important to actively promote dialogue and firmly devote to a peaceful solution of the Iranian nuclear issue under the current situation, Cheng told a board of governors meeting of the IAEA.
Sanctions or even military actions, which could by no means fundamentally solve the problem, threaten to complicate the situation, Cheng said.
China opposes proliferation of nuclear weapons and won't give its backs to any of the Mideast countries in developing nuclear weapons, he said.
As a signatory to the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons Treaty, Iran is entitled to peaceful uses of nuclear energy while fulfilling its relevant international obligations, Cheng said.
He called on Iran to step up its cooperation with the IAEA and clarify outstanding issues related to possible military dimensions to its nuclear program.
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