Special Report: Iran Nuclear Crisis

    TEHRAN, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- A senior Iranian lawmaker on Monday threatened to downgrade Iran's economic ties with France over the dispute of Tehran's nuclear program, local ISNA news agency reported.

    Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy commission, criticized French President Nicolas Sarkozy for his "pointless, hard-line and unfriendly" policies against Iran, especially in the Iranian nuclear issue.

    "France will be excluded from Iran's automobile industry incase Sarkozy continues his hostile policies," Boroujerdi was quoted as saying.

    "Our national interest is linked economically, to a considerable extent, to our relations to France," Boroujerdi said. "Since Sarkozy's government has sharpened its hostility against Iran, there remains no chance to maintain these ties."

    He did not rule out the possibility of replacing French auto industry in Iran with other European or Asian companies, saying, "although a thorough shift in an industry line is not easy and takes time, it is not impossible."

    France has been one of the main parties involved in Iran's nuclear standoff with the West. It has toughened its stance toward Iran over its nuclear program since Sarkozy took the power in May, 2007.