Iran says it will not retreat over nuclear rights

Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the country will “not retreat one iota” on its nuclear rights.

He was speaking on the day Iran is expected to present its formal response to a UN drafted nuclear fuel deal.

He said Tehran is ready to cooperate on issues regarding atomic fuel, power plants and nuclear technology, adding that the provision of nuclear fuel for a research reactor was an opportunity for Iran to evaluate the “honesty” of world powers and the UN nuclear agency.

Meanwhile a team of UN nuclear inspectors has returned from a visit to a previously secret uranium enrichment site in Iran.

On his arrival at Vienna airport, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency inspection team, Herman Nackaerts said: “Yes, we visited the Fordo enrichment plant and we are now going to analyse the data and the Director General will then report in due time.”

“Any surprises?” asked a reporter.

“I can’t comment on that,” came the reply.

The visit was the first independent look inside the Fordo enrichment plant near the holy city of Qom.

The inspectors are believed to have studied blueprints, interviewed key staff and taken soil samples as part of their three-day mission.

Western powers want to ship out Iran’s stocks of low enriched uranium, fearing it could be processed further and used to make nuclear warheads, a fear Iran says is baseless.

Copyright © 2009 euronews

tags: IAEA, Iran, Nuclear Energy