Iran vows transparency in push for win-win nuclear deal
0 Comment(s)
Print
E-mail Xinhua, November 13, 2014
Iran is ready for further transparency over its nuclear program within the international regulations, semi-official ISNA news agency quoted President Hassan Rouhani as saying on Wednesday.
Iran has done anything in its capacity to resolve its nuclear issue and expects that some members of the P5+1 group, particularly the United States which sometimes raises excessive demands in the talks, understand this, Rouhani said.
The Iranian president expressed "Iran's readiness to continue to be more transparent within the international rules and regulations," saying that his country is looking forward to a win- win deal since "an agreement for one side's benefit will not guarantee a strong and lasting agreement."
A nuclear deal between Iran and the powers will be in the interests of the Islamic republic and the rest of the world, and it would help the advancement in economy, science and global development, he said.
"If the P5+1 group intends to hinder Iran's progress, it would be impossible and the Iranian nation will never overlook their rights to development," Rouhani said a day after the fresh round of nuclear talks between Iran and the P5+1 group, including Britain, China, France, Russia, the United States plus Germany, in Muscat of Oman.
In the meantime, senior Iranian nuclear negotiator Abbas Araqchi said on Wednesday that the talks held in Muscat in the past days were useful.
The talks in the past days in Muscat were "very useful but we are not still at a point to say whether there has been any progress," Araqchi was quoted as saying by local media.
"Iran will, for certain, continue uranium enrichment, but the question is the capacity of enrichment," he said, adding that "our practical needs should determine the capacity of enrichment."
Iran and the P5+1 group concluded a new round of nuclear talks in Muscat on Tuesday, following a two-day trilateral meeting that involved the United States, Iran and the European Union (EU), to discuss core issues on Iran's nuclear program ahead of a Nov. 24 deadline.
The two sides agreed in July to extend the nuclear talks for another four months till Nov. 24, as they could not narrow down significant gaps on core issues during the past six months.
After the interim deal on Nov. 24 last year, both Iran and the P5+1 group held several rounds of talks trying to work out a final agreement.
Quoting Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Marzieh Afkham, Press TV reported on Wednesday that Iran has not agreed to stop injecting gas into its centrifuges for testing purposes.
Iran began testing the IR-5 centrifuges before it reached an interim nuclear deal with the world powers in Geneva last November, Afkham said, adding that the tests continued after the agreement.
Tehran once again tested the IR-5 centrifuges in March in line with nuclear research agenda of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Afkham said.
"All reports by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) over the past seven months verified the Islamic Republic of Iran's commitment to the Geneva deal and no case has been reported about any violation of the agreement," she said.
Afkham's remarks came after a report by the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security that Iran might have violated the interim deal by starting to inject natural uranium gas into its IR-5 centrifuges.
Such reports are media propaganda and Iran would test the centrifuges whenever it deems necessary, Afkham was quoted as saying.
Under the interim deal in Geneva last November, Iran was committed to halting enrichment above five percent and neutralizing its stockpile of near-20 percent uranium by means of dilution or converting. It also promised not to install more centrifuges, halt work at its plutonium reactor at Arak, and allow IAEA inspectors regular access to its enrichment facilities at Natanz and Fordow.
The West wants Iran to significantly scale back its nuclear program to address its concern of proliferation risk, while Iran insists that its nuclear right is inalienable. Iran has also said that its research activities pertaining to peaceful nuclear program would never be halted.
Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)