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Nuclear program, outcome of national demand in past 40 years

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Feb 11, IRNA
Iran-Nuclear Program-Saeedi
Iranian nuclear program is the outcome of national demand in the past 40 years and Iran has accomplished the fuel-cycle in the context of Safeguards Agreement of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Deputy head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization (IAEO) for International Affairs Mohammad Saeedi said on Sunday that the Iranian nation showed its support for the nuclear program on February 11 and the West is expected to receive the message of the nation.

Iran has reaffirmed commitment to Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the Western governments are expected to respect rights of the Iranian nation consistent with the nuclear energy and the right for development and progress as a great nation in the region.

"The Western governments are expected to reach a comprehensive understanding among themselves about status of Iran as a great country with national resolve to go ahead with development and progress," Saeedi said in an interview with IRNA.

Asked about IAEO's planning to establish nuclear power plants, Saeedi said IAEO has envisaged partnership of foreign countries and the companies in establishing new power plants.

Iran has planned to establish eight nuclear power plants with capacity of 1,000 megawatts each by the year 2015, IAEO chief Reza Aqazadeh announced last year.

In response to a question about process of installation of 3,000 centrifuges which had already been acknowledged to IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei, Saeedi said that process of setting up fuel-cycle is going on in line with Safeguards Agreement of IAEA.

He said that Iran has no technical problem for installation of 3,000 centrifuges.

"At a time when Iran had planned to launch Uranium Conversion Facility (UCF) in Isfahan and production of Uranium Hexaflouride, the Western media speculated that Iran lacked necessary know-how to do the job and that the speculation about lack of know-how for installation of 3,000 centrifuges is just the same," Saeedi said.

He said that the IAEA has cancelled technical cooperation with Iran in carrying out seven projects from 55 projects on which the two parties were cooperating.

"We have 15 national projects enjoying technical cooperation from the IAEA from which three projects have been cancelled by the agency.

"There are almost 12 projects which are mainly regional and transregional and the IAEA is expected to make decision on them one-by-one in future," Saeedi said.

He said that IAEA restrictions on technical cooperation with Iran apply to about 10 percent of the projects.

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