Iran's Ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Ali Asghar Soltanieh says the Islamic Republic will never stop its uranium enrichment activities and will vigorously pursue its nuclear energy program, Press TV reported.
Speaking at the Preparatory Committee for the 2015 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference in Vienna, Austria, on Friday, Soltanieh reiterated Tehran's stands on major issues, including nuclear disarmament, the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and the establishment of a nuclear weapons-free Middle East.
The Iranian envoy also stressed that Iran will actively pursue its peaceful nuclear activities, and will be firmly committed to its obligations based on the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). He also called on the NPT members to help the promotion of an atmosphere of cooperation among signatories of the accord.
Soltanieh highlighted that Iran is strongly opposed to the possession, production, or use of nuclear weapons as it adheres to commitments under the NPT.
"Peace and security will prevail across the world when the NPT is fully implemented," he pointed out.
Iran's ambassador to the IAEA also criticized the presence of US tactical nuclear weapons in Europe, arguing that the move is a flagrant breach of the NPT articles both by the United States and the European countries hosting such atomic armaments.
Moreover, Soltanieh expressed serious concerns over the leak of confidential information from the IAEA, and said that the national security of member states and the lives of scientists cooperating with the agency will be at risk if proper measures are not taken to stop information leakage.
Iran seeks to become well-versed in all fields of peaceful use of nuclear technology, in particular the uranium enrichment, as the Islamic Republic is determined to develop its economy and boost its self-sufficiency, the Iranian envoy said.
Soltanieh said that the intervention of the UN Security Council and efforts meant to deprive countries of their right to acquire peaceful nuclear energy undermines the credibility of the NPT.
The Iranian envoy also lambasted the discriminatory policies pursued by certain countries.
While these states slap sanctions on others to deprive them of their legal right to access peaceful nuclear energy, they have nuclear cooperation with the Zionist regime (Israel), which is not an NPT member, Soltanieh pointed out.
"Some governments have added another page to their history of enmity toward the nuclear energy progress of the Iranian nation by equipping and leading terrorists and the assassination of five Iranian nuclear scientists," the Iranian ambassador to the IAEA concluded.