Iran promises 'historic slap' to any attackerIran promises 'historic slap' to any attacker
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
LONDON, May 24 - Hardline Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad boasted Wednesday that the Islamic republic had mastered the entire nuclear fuel cycle and that it would give an "historic slap" to any attacker, AFP reported.
"Today, Iran has mastered the entire nuclear fuel cycle, from start to finish, thanks to young Iranian scientists," the hardline President said in a speech in the southwestern border town of Khorramshahr.
"The enemies are looking to plot and want to create differences among Iranians to stop us getting our rights," Ahmadinejad said.
"But if they do the slightest damage to the Iranian people, if they commit the slightest aggression, they will receive an historic slap."
The president was speaking during commemorations of the 1982 recapture from Iraqi forces of Khorramshahr, one of the bloodiest battles of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war.
Ahmadinejad's comments came as the permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany were to meet in London for fresh efforts to agree on a strategy to confront the Islamic regime's nuclear programme.
Iran says it wants to use the fuel cycle only to make civilian reactor fuel, and argues such work for peaceful purposes is a "right" enshrined by the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
But the same technology can be extended to make atomic weapons, and the United States in particular claims Iran is merely exploiting a loophole in the NPT.
The European Union's 'big three' -- Britain, France and Germany -- are hoping to coax Iran into suspending uranium enrichment work in exchange for a package of trade and technology incentives.
However, they want Russia and China to join in sanctions, including an arms embargo, if Iran does not agree, according to a draft proposal seen by AFP.
Iran has also rebuffed the EU-3's new initiative, repeating that its right to enrich uranium is not on the table. On April 11, Tehran announced it had actually made enriched uranium but only to levels needed for reactor fuel.
"The enemies have tried to use international organisations and political pressure... to prevent Iran from gaining its legitimate rights. But they know that cannot cause any damage," Ahmadinejad said in his speech, which was carried live on state television.