Iran Says Will Not Halt Nuclear Work Despite EU Calls

TEHRAN - Iran will not stop uranium enrichment, chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani said on Wednesday, despite a call by the European Union and U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to halt sensitive nuclear work.

"We heard about this EU demand and we said our view," Larijani told a news conference, referring to Iran's repeated stance it would not stop enrichment. He said such an EU approach was "from the past" and added: "We need new initiatives."

Western powers suspect Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear programme is solely aimed at generating electricity.

The European Union said earlier that the failure to include a provision for Iran to halt uranium enrichment in a transparency deal Tehran agreed in August with U.N. watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, was unacceptable.

Ban also said this week that Iran had to meet Security Council demands to suspend its enrichment work, not only cooperate with U.N. inspectors.

Larijani still voiced optimism about the chances of reaching a solution in the nuclear row: "I think the ground is paved for reaching a solution. It depends on the will of both parties (Iran and the West)."

Iran has faced two rounds of sanctions since December for not halting enrichment, a process which can make fuel for power plants or material for bombs. The United States has said Tehran could face a third round for rejecting the demand.

The Aug. 21 "work plan" commits Iran to answer five-year-old IAEA questions one by one over a rough timeline of a few months, while leaving untouched Tehran's expanding efforts to enrich uranium.

Western leaders believe the plan buys time for Iran to achieve "industrial" enrichment capacity without facing tougher sanctions, which Russia and China are blocking as long as the cooperation pact moves forward.

Larijani said: "Iran has shown that it has positive intentions ... Iran has taken very important positive steps to resolve the issue."