Tehran, May 17: Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hoped world powers would enter talks with Tehran after it agreed Monday to ship the bulk of its enriched uranium abroad, the state IRNA news agency reported.
“I hope the 5+1 (UN Security Council permanent members plus Germany) enter talks with honesty, respect and fairness and heed the great work started in Tehran,” he said.
Iran said Monday the ball is now in the court of Western powers in their nuclear standoff with Tehran.
“The ball is in their court,” foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told reporters after Iran signed the agreement with Brazil and Turkey to store its low enriched uranium in neighbouring Turkey to swap later for nuclear fuel.
Iran’s atomic chief Ali Akbar Salehi urged world powers to sign on to the agreement, insisting “Iran has shown its good will by accepting the Brazilian and Turkish proposal.
“From now on the ball is in the West’s court and the Vienna group (the United States, France and Russia) should give a suitable response to Iran’s offer of cooperation,” Salehi told the official IRNA news agency.
The agreement could help Iran resolve a long-standing standoff with world powers, who accuse Iran of seeking to make atomic weapons under the guise of a civilian programme, a charge that Iran has vehemently denied.
But in the meantime, Iran will continue enriching uranium to 20 percent, the foreign ministry spokesman told IRNA news agency Monday.
“Of course the 20 percent enrichment will continue in our own country,” Mehmanparast said.
—Agencies