Special report: Iran Nuclear Crisis

    TEHRAN, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reiterated on Tuesday that his country would continue its nuclear program and wouldn't retreat under international pressure, the state-run television reported.

    "I believe our policy is clear progress proposing transparent logic and insisting on the nation's rights without retreat," Khamenei was quoted as saying in a meeting with Iran's top officials.

An Iranian soldier salutes as the military vehicle he is on passes a picture of Iran 's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a military parade to commemorate the start of the 1980-88 Iran- Iraq war, in Tehran September 22, 2006. (Xinhua/AFP Photo) Photo Gallery >>>

    The supreme leader recalled that it had been right for Iran to temporarily suspend uranium enrichment under a previous agreement with European countries, even though Tehran has now resumed the controversial nuclear activity.

    Iran has agreed to suspend uranium enrichment during talks with Britain, France and Germany in November 2003. But it resumed the process after Mahmoud Ahmadinejad took office as president in 2005.

    "We ablins have blamed ourselves if we hadn't experienced that (suspension), and we might have asked ourselves 'why we had not try that?'" said Khamenei.

    "Now, we push forward with full confidence, no one could find a good reason that the nuclear path is wrong for Iran," he added.

    Meanwhile, Iranian President Ahmadinejad also vowed that the country would press on with the nuclear program.

    "The Iranian nation will continue its path of dignity based on resistance, wisdom and without fear," he was quoted as saying.

    In less than two weeks, Iran's top officials, especially president Ahmadinejad, have reiterated many times that Iran would not step back on its legal nuclear rights, warning the West not to imagine that the country would suspend uranium enrichment for even one day.

    The UN Security Council adopted a resolution in late July, urging Tehran to suspend by Aug. 31 all enrichment-related and reprocessing activities, including research and development, or face prospect of sanctions.

    It was reported that the five UN Security Council permanent members -- China, Britain, France, Russia, and the United States --plus Germany, would start to discuss this week a resolution imposing sanctions on Iran if it does not suspend its nuclear program.

    Despite Tehran's failure to meet the UN demand, EU foreign ministers decided in September to maintain serious talks with Tehran in efforts to solve Iran's nuclear issue through diplomacy. Enditem