TEHRAN: Iran’s Parliament Speaker, Ali Larijani, said Monday it is still possible to use diplomacy to resolve Iran’s nuclear issue. “There is still a diplomatic opportunity and it is beneficial for them to use this opportunity so that Iran proceeds within the framework of IAEA regulations and international surveillance and they see clearly that Iran is moving towards peaceful activities,” Larijani told reporters at a press conference on the occasion of Parliament Day on Monday. “Off course they are free to choose another path and Iran will behave according to that,” he added. Referring to Iran-P5+1 talks for supply of Tehran’s nuclear reactor fuel, he said, “perhaps they thought they can take our country’s enriched materials by deceit.” Asked about the possibility of economic sanctions or military attack against Iran over its nuclear dossier, he said Iran has never neglected the possibilities but added the enemy does not dare to invade Iran. “Israelis threatened Iran and it made Iran think of other ways to protect its nuclear facilities, threats were raised but they never dared to do it because Israel’s interior situation is disturbed.” Asked about Iran’s nuclear situation in the future and in case of tougher sanctions by the West against the country, he said if they want to continue the diplomatic path, Iran is also ready to continue negotiations. He also criticized the West for using the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) as a lever to politicize the atmosphere. Also regarding the guarantees that Iran is seeking in the nuclear issue, he explained, “we don’t want any special guarantee except for implementation of the agency’s regulations.” “Iran accepts to continue its move within the framework of the NPT, therefore, they must guarantee that they won’t meddle in, but what they recently did in the Board of Governors was out of the NPT regulations,” he said. “We believe that they must guarantee the NPT regulations are implemented properly and they don’t make political interference.” Iran’s Parliament believes that the international capacity is not limited and the capacity could be used to resolve the issue diplomatically, he added. He also urged the West to be frank and do not seek for deceit saying, “they say they want to reach an understanding with Iran but they issue resolutions against it, this approach harms our image.” Larijani also emphasized, “nuclear energy is a key issue for Iran and it is naive if the West presumes it can change it with a candy now that we have struggled to reach here.” The Parliament Speaker also touched on Russia’s behavior towards Iran including Bushehr nuclear power plant and S300 anti-missile systems saying, “Russians have not acted properly in some cases but it does not mean that they are an enemy, although such behaviors influence other issues.”
Friday, August 14, 2009 MUMBAI: A 26-year-old woman died Thursday of H1N1 swine flu in the southern city of Bangalore, raising India's death toll from the virus to 20, authorities said.The death was the first reported in India's information technology capital, the Press Trust of India reported.Meanwhile in Pune, the worst-affected in India, two more victims of the virus died Thursday, raising the death toll in that western city near Mumbai to 12, the report said. The victims were an 11-month-old boy and a 75-year-old old woman.US media reported movie halls, schools and colleges were ordered closed Thursday for three days to a week in Mumbai, the commercial and financial capital of the country, as fear of the pandemic spread.Prajakata Lavangare, a spokeswoman for the government of Maharashtra state of which Mumbai is the capital, said similar orders were issued in Pune, which is also located in the state.The woman who died in Bangalore was identified only as Roopa, a teacher in...
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