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Submitted by ctv_en_3 on Fri, 02/17/2006 - 11:35
Iran said on Thursday it had not yet begun any uranium enrichment and was still ready to negotiate on a Russian proposal for resolving a dispute with the West over its nuclear programme.

Iran said the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), could monitor its nuclear programme despite Tehran's decision to remove some surveillance cameras. The only solution to the impasse, it said, was for the West to stop threats and focus on negotiations.

No immediate comment was available from the Vienna-based IAEA, which has said Iran resumed small-scale feeding of uranium gas into centrifuge enrichment machines on Tuesday after a break of 2-1/2 years.

Earlier on Thursday, France accused Iran of pursuing a secret military nuclear programme, drawing a swift rebuke from Tehran before talks next week on the Russian proposal. Iran says its nuclear programme is solely for power generation.

China, which like France is a permanent UN Security Council member, said it was concerned about the standoff.

The United States said the international community was very concerned about Iran developing nuclear arms but diplomacy was being used to try to resolve the standoff. Gholamreza Aghazadeh, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Agency, said Tehran had not yet enriched any uranium, a process Western countries suspect could lead to the development of nuclear weapons.

Russia has offered to enrich Iranian uranium on its soil and return it to Iran for use in atomic reactors, thereby easing international concerns Iran could produce bomb-grade uranium.

In the earlier exchanges that boded ill for talks in Moscow on Monday on the Russian proposal, French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said Iran's nuclear work could not possibly be designed for civilian uses alone.

The IAEA's board of governors decided on February 4 to report Iran to the council, which has the power to impose sanctions.

Reuters

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