TEHRAN, February 3 (RIA Novosti) - The Iranian president said Friday the Islamic Republic would consider other ways of applying its "lawful" nuclear rights if no logical decision came from the UN's nuclear watchdog.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that if the International Atomic Energy Agency, which is holding a two-day emergency meeting on Iran in Vienna, did not take into consideration proposals based on logic, Iran would suspend its voluntary cooperation with the agency and consider other ways of using its rights to conduct nuclear research.
The president, who has stirred controversy for his hard-line position, has already said that the country will "resolutely defend" its right to nuclear power.
Iran said earlier this month that it was resuming nuclear research for energy after a two-year self-imposed moratorium. However, the move raised global concerns, as uranium enrichment can also be used to create nuclear weapons. The United States and other Western nations and Israel have been pushing for reporting Iran to the UN Security Council, which could impose sanctions against the country.
The Iranian president said that in accordance with the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, the IAEA and its 35-nation board of governors were supposed to encourage other countries signatory to the treaty, including Iran, to pursue peaceful nuclear research and hold back pressure from nuclear powers.
The IAEA governors convened for the second day of the emergency session Friday to discuss a draft resolution on Iran's nuclear problem drawn up by the European trio of Britain, France and Germany. The document was coordinated by five veto-wielding permanent members of the UN Security Council - U.S., France, Britain, Russia and China - and Germany, but representatives of other countries suggested amendments.
