IRAN: Iran said yesterday it had defeated US efforts to send its nuclear case to the UN Security Council, while warning that its uranium enrichment freeze would only last for a few months.
"The Americans have been calling for Iran to be reported to the security council for a year-and-a-half, now the whole world has turned down America's calls," Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Mr Hassan Rohani told a news conference.
"Despite the US propaganda Iran has not relinquished its right to the [ nuclear] fuel cycle and it never will do," said the cleric, who is secretary-general of Iran's top security body, the Supreme National Security Council.
His comments appeared to undermine EU efforts to persuade Tehran to permanently stop enrichment facilities - which can be used to make atomic reactor fuel or nuclear bombs - and were likely to fuel US concerns that Iran secretly plans to produce nuclear weapons.
Iran, which insists its nuclear programme is solely for electricity generation, on Monday escaped possible UN sanctions after agreeing to suspend all uranium processing and enrichment activities.
The EU hopes Iran will make the suspension permanent in return for trade deals and other incentives. However, Tehran says the suspension is a voluntary and temporary measure designed to gain international trust.
"The length of the suspension will only be for the length of the negotiations with the Europeans and . . . must be rational and not too long," Mr Rohani said.
"We're talking about months, not years," he added.