Iran Refutes US Allegation on Nuclear Weapons

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, February 04, 2003

Iran Refutes US Allegation on Nuclear Weapons

Iran has dismissed a US allegation that Iran is making efforts to acquire nuclear arms, the official IRNA news agency reported on Monday.

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Iran has dismissed a US allegation that Iran is making efforts to acquire nuclear arms, the official IRNA news agency reported on Monday.

Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi was quoted as saying "all of Iran's nuclear activities are under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which has repeatedly confirmed the peaceful nature of the activities."

US State Department Spokesman Richard Boucher told a news briefing on Friday that Iran is using its Bushehr light-water reactor for a secret advancement of a nuclear weapons program.

"We believe Iran uses Bushehr as a cover and a pretext for obtaining sensitive technologies to advance its nuclear weapons program," he said.

Rejecting the allegation, Asefi said "peaceful use of nuclear technology for a higher standard of living is the right of Iranian nation. As an IAEA member state, Iran has the right to use this technology and no country can deny Iran the access to the peaceful use of it."

"By spreading poisonous and contemptuous rumors, the United States is striving to militarize the international atmosphere with an eye to advance its own political and economic interest and to achieve a unilateral policy in international affairs," the spokesman added.

Iran's Atomic Energy Organization has repeatedly assured that Iran abides by all the provisions of the non-proliferation treaty, and the aim of Bushehr nuclear power plant in the south is only to produce nuclear energy in addition to its contribution to cleaner environment.

Russia signed an agreement worth 800 million US dollars with Iran in 1995 on building a nuclear plant in Bushehr on the Gulf coast.

The project has infuriated Washington, which brands Iran as partof an "axis of evil."

Russia defends its cooperation with Iran by reiterating that itsaid only serves civilian purposes

Under an agreement signed between Tehran and Moscow last month, Iran will repatriate the burned fuels, which could be weapon-grade,to Russia.

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