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Iran Will Step Up Enrichment Activities if UN Takes Action Against it
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=1139DA0:3919ACA Iran's top nuclear
negotiator, Ali Larijani, says nuclear research and development is in
his country's national interest





Ali Larijani gestures at news conference at Iranian Embassy in Moscow,
March 2, 2006Iran has warned it will resume full scale uranium
enrichment if the U.N. Security Council takes action over its nuclear
program.

Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Ali Larijani, says nuclear research and
development is in his country's national interest. An Iranian foreign
ministry spokesman, Hamid Reza Asefi, says Monday's meeting of the
International Atomic Energy Agency on Iran will show if the agency's
decisions are based on politics.

They spoke Sunday, one day before the IAEA discusses Iran and reports
its findings to the Security Council.

On Saturday, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the
Security Council is not likely to immediately impose sanctions on
Iran. But she said the council will have to have a serious discussion
about what the next steps will be.

President Bush says the world will be in danger if Iran acquires
nuclear weapons. Washington accuses Tehran of secret efforts to
develop such weapons. Iran says its nuclear program is for generating
electricity. It resumed enriching uranium this year despite Western
protests.

Iran and Russia have been discussing a Russian proposal that would
have Iranian nuclear fuel enriched in Russia. That proposal is
designed to ease concerns that Iran could use enriched fuel to build a
nuclear weapon. Iran says those talks will end if it is referred to
the Security Council.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.


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