Senior Iranian cleric says 'West can keep proposal package'

Deutsche Presse-Agentur by way of Monsters and Critics ^ | 09JUN06 | Deutsche Presse-Agentur

[familyop]

Tehran - A senior Iranian cleric Friday rejected Western proposals on its its nuclear programme.

'The West can keep this proposal package for itself because it is no use for Iran and the Iranian nation,' Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati said at the Friday prayer ceremony in the Tehran university.

His remarks were approved by thousands of worshippers who shouted the standard slogan of 'Nuclear technology is our undeniable right.'

'Yes, of course this is your right and you will eventually get this right,' said Jannati, who is head of the powerful senate-like Guardian Council.

'History has taught us a lesson: whenever we have resisted, we have won, whenever we have not, we have lost. We have to learn from this historic lesson and keep resisting,' said the Ayatollah, who is one of the main supporters of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Jannati said that all high-ranking Iranian officials are unanimous 'that Iran should not retreat one step from its legitimate right (to pursue nuclear technology).'

'The West must eventually accept that we will have a uranium enrichment level of 3.5 to 5 percent and if still any misunderstandings, then we could have talks to remove them,' the Ayatollah said.

Uranium enrichment up to 5 per cent can only be used for producing nuclear fuel, which Tehran says is the final aim, but the West fears that Iran might increase the enrichment percentage for making atomic bombs. Tehran has constantly denied these charges.

President Ahmadinejad said Thursday that there would be no concession over Iran's right to pursue nuclear technology and that he would not allow the West to tell the country what to do and what to decide.

'The West would make a grave mistake in believing that the Iranian nation would negotiate about its destiny because Iran will not retreat one iota from its undeniable rights to pursue peaceful nuclear technology,' Ahmadinejad said.