Rafsanjani slams west psywar on Iran

Amid a Western push for fresh sanctions against Iran, an influential Iranian cleric and politician says psychological warfare cannot prevent Tehran from exercising its nuclear rights.

Chairman of Iran’s Expediency Council Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani described the Islamic Republic as “determined” to defend its rights and in particular its nuclear rights on the international stage.

“Iran will not give up its rights in the face of such psychological warfare, threats, and intimidation,” ISNA quoted Hashemi-Rafsanjani as saying on Saturday.

According to the senior Iranian official, the region and the world will pay a heavy price if “hostile and unethical ways” are adopted to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue.

Hashemi-Rafsanjani further criticized permanent members of the UN Security Council for their reaction to a nuclear fuel swap declaration issued by Tehran.

“If the world acknowledges diplomacy as the best way to resolve international issues, hostile countries led by the United States should have welcomed Iran’s latest diplomatic initiative,” he said.

As part of a quest for a diplomatic solution to the standoff over Iran’s nuclear program, Tehran, Brazilia, and Ankara held trilateral talks on Monday, following which the Islamic Republic issued a nuclear declaration.

Under the declaration, Iran agrees to send some 1,200 kg of its 3.5 percent enriched uranium to Turkey in exchange for 120 kg of 20 percent enriched uranium.

The declaration is a follow-up to an earlier plan to provide fuel for the Tehran Research Reactor, which produces medical isotopes for cancer patients.

Despite the major breakthrough in Iran’s nuclear case, Washington has showed no signs of slowing down its push for fresh sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

The US and its allies have been accusing Iran of efforts to produce nuclear weapons – an allegation that the Tehran government has categorically rejected.