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Iran Focus  Tehran, Iran, May 10 - Iran has presented a package of nuclear proposals to the West in a bid to counter a similar offer to be made by major world powers to Tehran to convince it to abandon its controversial nuclear activities.
The package was handed to Spanish Foreign Minister Angel Moratinos in Madrid on Friday by Iran's ambassador to Spain, Davoud Salehi Monfared, the official news agency IRNA reported. The package was said to include "scientific and executive proposals on political, security, economic, and nuclear issues". Iran's ambassador to the United Kingdom, Rasoul Movahedian, announced earlier this week that the Iranian package would not forgo Iran's right to enrich uranium, which is a key demand of the successive United Nations Security Council resolutions. Iranian state media also quoted Iran's ambassador to Japan, Abbas Araqchi, as saying that suspension of uranium enrichment had no place in Tehran's proposed package. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed last week that the Islamic Republic would resist UN Security Council sanctions over its nuclear work. World powers agreed last week in London to offer Iran a "refreshed" package of incentives to convince it to halt enrichment and come to the negotiating table. The Security Council voted in March to impose a third set of sanctions on Iran over its refusal to halt its suspected nuclear weapons activity. A European-sponsored resolution was adopted at the 15-member Council by 14 votes in favour, none opposed, and one abstention from Indonesia. Resolution 1803 increased the mild trade bans in effect on Iran to include certain goods with both civilian and military uses. Under the new sanctions, certain Iranian companies and banks will have their accounts frozen, and goods entering and leaving Iran must be subjected to inspections. The Security Council previously imposed two sets of milder sanctions on Tehran in December 2006 and March 2007 over its refusal to halt its uranium enrichment activities which the West suspects is part of a nuclear weapons program. |
