‘Iran to enrich uranium, whatever the result’

Iran will eventually resume its controversial uranium enrichment activities regardless of the result of the Islamic republic’s Presidential election, the Foreign Ministry insisted on Friday. ‘‘Whoever is the next President, a permanent suspension is not on the cards,’’ Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said. ‘‘Decisions on the nuclear question are taken in a collective way and at the highest levels of the regime,’’ he commented, even though he said the President ‘‘does have a certain influence’’.

A victory by hardliner Mahmood Ahmadinejad would remove a moderating influence from within the regime and could put the Islamic republic on a collision course with the West. However, Akbar Rafsanjani is expected to stick by a freeze of sensitive N-activities and talks with Britain, France and Germany. —AFP