TEHRAN, Sept.9 (Xinhua) -- Iranian top leaders said
on Sunday that the Islamic Republic had no nuclear bombs and would not produce
it, but vowed to press on the disputed nuclear program.
In a meeting with the commanders of the Islamic
Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told
them "Iranian nation does not have atomic bomb and has no intention to gain
access to such a weapon either."
"Dignity of the Iranian nation emanates from belief
in religious commands and good deeds and clarified prospects," he added.
This is not Khamenei's first time to make such kind
of statements. In the past years when Iran's relations with the West escalated
due to the nuclear issue, the leaders reiterated it.
Meanwhile, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad vowed that
the nuclear program of his country would not be negotiable with anyone,
according to a report by the official IRNA news agency.
"Iranian nation is logical and could have dialogue
with, however, they will not negotiate about its rights with anyone,"
Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying.
"One or two countries in the world do not recognize
the reality and they believe they could force Iran to retreat, but enemies of
these countries must understand Iran would never back off," he added.
The United States and some other Western countries
have accused Iran of developing atomic weapons under a civilian cover, but Iran
denied the allegations, saying it just wants to generate electricity.
Since last December, the UN Security Council has
issued two sanction resolutions against Tehran's nuclear program, demanding it
to halt the sensitive uranium enrichment work. However, Iran didn't comply with
the requests.
The president also mentioned the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA) which praised Iran over the cooperation between the two
sides in the past months, saying it shows that European nations have a more
positive approach to the situation than certain other countries, which clearly
referred to the United States and Britain.
Since this July, Iran has showed its willingness for
more cooperation with the agency, allowing nuclear inspectors to visit its
sensitive Arak heavy water nuclear reactor.
In an IAEA report in August, the UN atomic watchdog
applauded the progress with Tehran and the report was considered a brake on the
U.S. push for new sanctions in the Security Council.
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali
Hosseini said Tehran would continue the cooperation with IAEA, but warned that
it "would reconsider the cooperation if another (Security Council) resolution
was issued against Iran."
TEHRAN, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Tuesday that his country is determined to continue
its nuclear program despite opposition from some "big powers."
"According to regulations of the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA), every country has the right to gain access to peaceful
nuclear energy," Ahmadinejad told a press conference in Tehran. Full story
