Iranians demonstrate to back N-programme

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Iranians demonstrate to back N-programme

TEHRAN: Thousands of Iranians gathered in Tehran on Friday to back the Islamic republic’s atomic energy programme, suspected by the United States and Israel of hiding a nuclear weapons drive.

The demonstration occurred shortly before the UN nuclear watchdog, which has been pressing Tehran for more transparency over its nuclear ambitions, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for opposing the spread of nuclear arms. "Nuclear science is our right, and the world has accepted that," chanted demonstrators as they gathered in the centre of the capital after Friday prayers. "Death to America, death to Israel and death to Great Britain," some shouted.

"The United States is our enemy" and "suspending again our nuclear activity is an impossibility, because it is a sign of our independence," others proclaimed. Along with France and Germany in what is known as the EU-3, Britain has been negotiating with Iran on behalf of the European Union. The aim has been to convince Iran to abandon uranium enrichment altogether in exchange for a package of trade and technology incentives.

Iran had agreed to suspend enrichment-related work as part of a deal struck with the EU-3 last November. Enrichment can make reactor fuel but the process can be diverted to military purposes. The United States alleges that Iran is secretly developing nuclear weapons, but Iran vehemently maintains its nuclear programme is a peaceful effort to generate electricity. Shimon Peres, an Israeli Nobel Peace Prize winner, said that bestowing this year’s Nobel Peace Prize on the International Atomic Energy Agency and its chief, Mohamed ElBaradei, was a warning to Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

"It is a warning to Iran because Iran is today the biggest and most dangerous problem," the deputy prime minister told public radio. Angered by EU proposals, Iran last month resumed uranium conversion, which is a precursor to enrichment. On September 24, the IAEA opened the door to reporting Iran to the UN Security Council for violating international nuclear safeguards, in a divisive vote that signalled an escalation of the West’s face-off with Tehran.

The resolution said the Islamic Republic is in "non-compliance" with international safeguards of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), mainly for hiding sensitive atomic activities for almost two decades. In his Friday sermon, Ayatollah Ahmad Janati said there "should be no fear of sanctions but if they want to impose sanctions on us we will not yield, but resist."

Accusing the Western powers of always "deceiving the people they negotiate with," he warned against weakness on Iran’s part. He reminded his listeners of a 19th century treaty in which a Persian shah ceded some of the country’s territory to Russia. Earlier this week, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran nuclear facilities were not up for negotiation and that Tehran would not talk with countries demanding they be dismantled. But on Friday, Foreign Minister Manoushehr Mottaki called on the Europeans to resume negotiations, which he said were the "best way to reach an agreement."

But he warned that if the IAEA resolution "is not corrected or if there is insistence on applying the illegal and non-juridical portions of the resolution, Iran reserves the right to cease those voluntary measures that were designed to create confidence."