Iran won’t climb down on nukes

Iran defiantly insisted on Saturday that it would never give up its nuclear fuel programme despite a new united policy of incentives and thr...

Iran defiantly insisted on Saturday that it would never give up its nuclear fuel programme despite a new united policy of incentives and threats from Washington and the European Union.

‘‘The Islamic Republic of Iran is determined to use peaceful nuclear technology and no pressure, intimidation or threat can make Iran give up its right,’’ said Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi.

While the UK, Germany and France said on Friday they would back US demands to send Iran’s case to the UN Security Council if it resumed enrichment, Washington offered backing for the EU’s diplomatic approach.

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US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Washington would allow Iran to begin talks on joining the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and consider letting it buy civilian airline parts if it stopped activities that could produce fuel for nuclear power plants or atomic weapons.

Iran dismissed the incentives as meaningless. Asefi said US restrictions on the sale of aircraft spares to Iran should never have been imposed. ‘‘Lifting them is no concession and entering the WTO is a clear right of all countries,’’ he said. ‘‘Correcting some (previous) errors and lifting some restrictions imposed on Iran without reason will not stop Iran from acquiring its legitimate rights.’’

Iran says it can offer the world ‘‘objective guarantees’’ it will not make atom bombs, including measures like allowing intrusive UN inspections of its nuclear sites. ‘‘The problem is that the Europeans should give up their illogical stance,’’ Sirus Naseri, a senior member of Iran’s nuclear negotiating team, told state television. ‘‘What we have said is that our fuel production will continue.’’

But Washington and the EU say the only acceptable guarantee is for Iran to scrap its nuclear fuel production plans altogether.

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Hassan Rohani, Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator, said a key Iran-EU meeting would be held in Paris on March 23. ‘‘It will be a very important session and we hope to reach an acceptable conclusion through legal and diplomatic means,’’ the Jomhuri-ye Eslami newspaper quoted him as saying. Technical talks are due to be held in Geneva next week ahead of the Paris meeting, diplomats said. —Reuters

‘Rashid misquoted on Khan supplying Iran centrifuges’

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan PM Shaukat Aziz on Saturday played down remarks by Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed that A.Q. Khan had supplied nuclear centrifuges to Iran. ‘‘The information minister was misquoted,’’ Aziz said. Ahmed said on Thursday that Khan gave Iran centrifuges that could be used to make nuclear weapons. Opposition members walked out of Parliament on Friday in protest. —PTI