FM attends Majlis session to clarify Iran`s nuclear dossier
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
Tehran, Aug 10, IRNA -- Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi here Tuesday attended Majlis open session to answer the questions raised by five lawmakers on Iran`s nuclear dossier. The lawmakers were dissatisfied with Kharrazi`s briefing on the issue and the Foreign Ministry`s measures to the effect. Therefore, the questions were passed on to Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission for further assessment. In the meeting, MP from Tabriz Akbar Alami was the first lawmaker who started by analyzing Iran`s diplomacy on the nuclear program and asked the reason for special focus given to the issue from security point of view and overlooking its legal aspect. He further inquired about the reason Iran yielded to the pressures exerted by the West and EU instead of bringing up the issue in the international assemblies to appear before negotiators with more solid evidence. Turning to the relevant negotiations in Paris, he said, "I have even heard that one of the Iranian negotiators had announced that if Iran`s nuclear dossier was not handed over to UN Security Council, we would guarantee not to quit the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) forever. In response to Alami, the foreign minister said that the dossier has exactly been through a legal process. He added that Iranian officials managed to overcome the political and security pressures as well as propaganda launched against Iran by the US. "Iran`s nuclear issue has its own particular process and the Secretary of Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Hassan Rowhani is in charge of the dossier, while Iran`s Foreign Ministry and Atomic Energy Organization cooperate closely. Kharrazi assured the lawmakers that Iran will defend its rights on access to nuclear technology, which is sought for peaceful application. The lawmaker from Isfahan, Ali Ahmadi asked the minister, "Why was the additional protocol to NPT enforced before being ratified by Majlis and why was the dossier treated as a political case instead of a legal one?" The minister replied that the additional protocol to NPT signed by Iran will be implemented officially and legally, once it is ratified by Majlis. "However, to ease the political and security atmosphere as well as the propaganda launched against Iran, the Iranian officials decided to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) within the framework of the additional protocol to NPT based on the predicted criteria and standards. "It has never been officially confirmed that the protocol will be implemented before being ratified by Majlis. We have rather said that Iran will cooperate with IAEA within the framework of the additional protocol," he added. Kharrazi said that if Majlis finds the contents of the inked protocol against the national interests, it has the right to dismiss it, given that it is authorized to finalize the issue. "Iran has never overlooked its rights to enrichment of uranium and its temporary suspension does not indicate complete withdrawal," he added. Concerning the political negotiations on the issue, he noted that despite the fact that IAEA is a private agency, the presence of the representatives of world countries accounts for its political atmosphere. "This is mainly why the US succeeded in launching political propaganda against Iran," he added. Kharrazi hoped that Majlis will support the measures taken by the Iranian officials on the country`s nuclear dossier. The head of today`s open session, Mohammad-Reza Bahonar, asked the lawmakers whether they were satisfied with the minister`s explanations. Given that the lawmakers` answer was negative, they decided to refer the issue to Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission for closer assessment. 2326/1412
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