Iran will not accept demands beyond NPT

Head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) Fereydoun Abbasi says Tehran will not accept demands that do not fit within framework of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

When asked about Iran’s upcoming talks with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in an interview on Wednesday, Abbasi said if the IAEA representatives come to Tehran with preconceptions and ignore Iran’s rights, there will be no positive outcome.

Top officials from Iran and the IAEA held talks over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear energy program on December 13, 2012.

Following the meeting, the IAEA Deputy Director General Herman Nackaerts said progress had been made during the talks, adding that more negotiations had been scheduled for January 16.

“If IAEA representatives come [to Tehran] without preconditions and with a just approach and [if] their aim is to bring the truth to light, and they take our rights into consideration we will definitely reach a conclusion in the next talks,” said Abbasi.

Abbasi added that based on the country’s needs, 5-percent uranium enrichment is going on at Natanz facility while 20-percent enrichment is taking place at Fordo and Natanz nuclear sites.

He said Iran has received proposals from the Western and Asian countries for the construction of new nuclear facilities in the Islamic Republic.

The Iranian official stressed that despite the hostile policies of the Western countries toward Iran, their companies are after their own interests.

The United States, Israel and some of their allies have repeatedly accused Iran of pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program.

Iran argues that as a signatory to the NPT and a member of the IAEA, it is entitled to develop nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.