TEHRAN, April 27 (RIA Novosti) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad reiterated Thursday that Tehran would retain its right to enrich uranium for energy purposes.
"We have mastered the technology of nuclear fuel production and no one can take this right away from the Iranian nation," the controversial leader said.
The hard-line president said that if the West failed to respect the Islamic Republic's right to nuclear energy, it would suffer a humiliating defeat.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin restated his country's position Thursday that a diplomatic solution to the long-running crisis should be found and the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), should play the main role in efforts.
Earlier this month Gholamreza Aghazadeh, the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, said on national TV that Iranian specialists had started enriching uranium to 3.5% - a level sufficient for use in nuclear power plants.
Mohamed ElBaradei, director general of the IAEA, will report April 28 to the UN Security Council, which has the authority to impose economic sanctions if Iran is found to be in breach of its international commitments.
