Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei speaking to a crowd at a ceremony in Tehran, yesterday.
TEHRAN: Iran’s Supreme Leader said yesterday that his country was not seeking nuclear weapons, but that if Tehran intended to build them, the US couldn’t stop it.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on all state matters in Iran, also rejected direct talks with the US over its nuclear program despite the pressure of sanctions. “We believe nuclear weapons must be abolished and we have no intention of building” such weaponry, Khamenei said in remarks posted on his website, leader.ir. But he added: “If Iran had the intention to build nuclear weapons, the US could in no way stop the Iranian nation.”
He said Tehran would hold talks with the US if Washington respects Iran’s rights instead of resorting to bullying. “They want to deny the Iranian nation of its definite and inalienable right to uranium enrichment and peaceful use of nuclear energy. Of course, they won’t succeed,” Khamenei said.
Iran recently has highlighted a religious decree Khamenei issued more than seven years ago that bans nuclear weapons in an effort to back up its claim that Tehran’s nuclear program is being used for peaceful purposes and medical research. Iran authorities often cite the decree to counter Western suspicions that Iran could ultimately move toward an atomic bomb.
Although Iran views Khamenei’s 2005 fatwa as a binding declaration, the West and its allies have repeatedly accused Iran of using any tactic to prolong the standoff over its nuclear program, and possibly advance its nuclear capabilities. Iran denies such aspirations, insisting it is enriching only to make reactor fuel and to make isotopes for medical purposes.
Tehran, however, has left UN nuclear inspectors empty-handed when it comes to addressing Western suspicions that it’s conducting tests related to nuclear weapons. Three rounds of talks last year made no headway on the West’s main demand: That Iran halt its highest-level uranium enrichment. Moreover, Iran recently said it had begun installing a new generation of centrifuges at its main uranium enrichment facility in Natanz.
“Sanctions hurt the people. But there are two options. One is to surrender and repent in the face of the bullying powers like weak nations,” Khamenei said. “The other is to activate domestic resources and capabilities like a brave nation and triumphantly pass the danger zone. Undoubtedly, the Iranian nation has chosen the second option.”
Addressing a group of Iranians at his home in the capital, Khamenei also scolded President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his conservative rivals for factional fighting, saying they should unite rather than quarrel at a time when the West was stepping up sanctions on Iran.
Khamenei was referring to a barely audible videotape showing Fazel Larijani, the brother of parliament Speaker Ali Larijani, in a meeting where he allegedly sought a bribe in return for ensuring the support of the Speaker and another brother, who is chief of the judiciary. Ali Larijani denied the charge saying he had no business relation with his brother. He accused Ahmadinejad of having a “Mafia-type” attitude and said the president was disregarding the country’s dignity, law and ethics.
AP
