Iran's President Says He'll Move Forward With Nuclear Program

[Draptomania]

Iran's President Says He'll Move Forward With Nuclear Program




By MICHAEL SLACKMAN
Published: June 26, 2005
TEHRAN, June 26 - Iran's conservative president-elect, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, said today that he planned to move forward with his nation's nuclear program, insisting it was a matter of national pride. But he also agreed to continue discussions with three European nations which, along with the United States, fear the Islamic Republic is intent on building nuclear weapons.

In his first news conference since his election on Friday, Mr. Ahmadinejad demonstrated the kind of positions that made him the choice of this country's hard-liners, dismissing the need for any relationship with the United States, telling the Europeans they needed "to come down from their towers," and to move forward with the nuclear program.

"We need this technology in medicine, and engineering and for the progress of our youth and we will pursue it," he said, referring to nuclear technology in his hourlong news conference.

But on the most combustible of issues, like the nuclear program, the president-elect left himself some room to maneuver. Unlike hard-line members of Iran's parliament, for example, Mr. Ahmadinejad said he would continue the talks with the European Union - just as the outgoing president, Mohammad Khatami, had done.

"We will defend the right of Iranian people and this is definite," Mr. Ahmadinejad said at the news conference. "If they have a reasonable approach, the Europeans are obligated to fulfill their promises. In that case we will reach a conclusion soon."

With his election as president in a landslide victory over a former two-term president, Ali Akhbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Mr. Ahmadinejad gained a seat at the table in setting the course of Iran's nuclear program. As is the case with all of Iran's policies, the ultimate decisions are made by appointed clerics, chiefly the supreme religious leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Though Iran is one of the world's largest producers of oil, it has said that it needs nuclear technology so that it can export more of its oil to raise money for development. But many western countries believe Iran plans to use its nuclear program to build weapons - a charge the country denies.

Talks are scheduled to resume between the European Union and Iran this summer, and European leaders are concerned that their efforts to stop Iran's nuclear development will be thwarted by the ascension of a hard-line, religious conservative to the presidency.

But Mr. Ahmadinejad does not appear overly concerned about what anyone outside Iran is thinking of him. He speaks with a nationalist pride, and a determination to have Iran treated as an equal, not as a second-class party at the negotiating table.

- At his news conference, the new president carried himself as a rehearsed politician, staying on message, deflecting questions he did not want to answer, always returning to the themes of moderation, progress and development - even when it came to the United States.

"Our nation is continuing on the path of progress and on this path has no significant need for the United States," Mr. Ahmadinejad said.

But, he added: "We would like to have relations with any country that doesn't have hostile relations towards us. I think those in the United States who want to have relations with Iran should state their policies transparently so that we can examine the possibility of having relations."

The new president also offered a conciliatory gesture to his political opponents, including the reform movement leaders who with this election have been vanquished from power. He also tried to reassure the public he is not about to impose a Taliban-style government on the nation, as his critics charged during the campaign.

"In domestic policy, moderation will be the policy of the government," he said. "We will confront any kind of extremism."

Mr. Ahmadinejad also sought to calm the concerns of investors and the business community. He said he had never called for closing down Tehran's stock market - as has been reported in Iran - and he said he welcomed foreign investment into Iran.

"I will support the stock market," he said, adding that he wants to implement some changes to rid the market of corruption and favoritism.

[rebelAfrika]

Quick Quiz: Which country is the only country ON EARTH to EVER ever drop nuclear weapons (Atomic Bombs) on another people?

[Learn06]

I got to say 1 time for Iran cause the niggas that's pulling the strings in the U.S. is a bunch of cowardly hearted...

holla at me

06

[Draptomania]

Iran's New Leader to Pursue Nuclear Plans By KATHY GANNON, Associated Press Writer




TEHRAN, Iran - The president-elect of Iran vowed to restart the nation's controversial nuclear program, saying it was meant only for peaceful energy purposes. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld labeled the new ultraconservative leader as "no friend of democracy."



Asked about relations with the United States during his first news conference since Friday's election, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Sunday that Iran "is taking the path of progress based on self-reliance. It doesn't need the United States significantly on this path."

In a sign of tensions likely ahead, Rumsfeld dismissed the vote as a "mock election."

Ahmadinejad entered the crowded chambers in Iran's municipal building with little fanfare, maintaining the unassuming style embraced by the roughly 17 million Iranians who voted him to power in a landslide victory.

His government's foreign policy would focus on "peace, moderation and coexistence," he said.

"Moderation will be the policy of (my) popular government. Extremism will have no place in (my) popular government," he said.

He fielded questions confidently and smiled broadly when asked by an Iranian female journalist wearing a colorful head scarf whether he would introduce a strict dress code.

It wasn't his job to decide, he said.

"I am the president. There are people who make those decisions," Ahmadinejad said. He appeared to be referring to the judiciary and the police, which enforce the law on the dress code.

In his opening statement, he promised to shun extremism and cobble together a moderate regime. Yet critics say his election only consolidated the hard-liners' hold on power, and no reform-minded people remain in the government.

"He is no friend of democracy," Rumsfeld said on "Fox News Sunday." "He is a person who is very much supportive of the current ayatollahs, who are telling the people of that country how to live their lives, and my guess is over time the young people and women will find him as well as his masters unacceptable."

A key concern for the United States is Iran's 20-year-old nuclear program, revealed in 2002.

The United States alleges the program is aimed at building atomic weapons. Iran insists it is only interested in generating electricity. Uranium enriched to low levels has energy uses, while highly enriched uranium can be used in bombs.

Iran suspended all uranium enrichment-related activities in November to avoid possible sanctions from the U.N. Security Council, but it said all along the suspension was temporary. France, Britain and Germany have offered economic incentives in hopes of persuading Iran to permanently halt enrichment.

"We need the peaceful nuclear technology for energy, medical and agricultural purposes and our scientific progress. We will continue this," Ahmadinejad said.

He said Iran's decision would not change, but he did not say when the resumption would begin.

"This is the final path we have taken," he said.

Concerning Iran's negotiations with France, Britain and Germany, Ahmadinejad said he was waiting for specific offers to break the stalemate.

"We will continue talks with Europeans while preserving our national interests and insistence on the right of the Iranian nation to use nuclear energy," he said.

On Monday, European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana said he saw no immediate reason to change policy on Iran following Ahmadinejad's election, adding that nuclear talks with Tehran will continue.

"We don't have any reason to change at this time," Solana said.

Officials at the EU head office and Solana also demanded Iran address claims of voter irregularities in the presidential vote.

"I have some doubts about ... the manner in which the election has taken place," Solana said.

Western leaders have worried that relations with Iran may become increasingly troublesome with Ahmadinejad as president.

As Tehran mayor, he also served as managing director of a newspaper affiliated with the Tehran municipality. He quickly replaced journalists who defended pro-democracy reforms with conservative writers.

He also replaced most district mayors considered pro-reform.

"We didn't have a revolution to have a democracy," he is widely quoted as saying, referring to the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

A former Revolutionary Guard commander, Ahmadinejad resurrected platitudes popular in the movement's early days.

"Iran can accomplish anything. Iranians have everything they need themselves to accomplish everything," he said Sunday.

His comments overlooked the fact that Iran's economy is staggering under the weight of high unemployment, double-digit inflation and interest rates of 25 percent to 30 percent on personal loans.

He also responded harshly to comments in Sunday's Rome daily La Repubblica, where European Union Justice Commissioner Franco Frattini was quoted as saying: "We are waiting for clear words on human rights and the nuclear issue from the new president. But if the responses are negative, the European Union can't but freeze the dialogue with Iran."

Ahmadinejad said the European Union "should come down from its ivory tower and understand that they cannot talk to the Iranian nation in this way."

Ahmadinejad said he would seek to improve relations with other countries and "pay attention to improving relations with any country that doesn't seek hostilities against Iran."