Iran Official: Can't Stop, Won't Stop Enriching Uranium

[HuffingtonPost]

DUBAI, Feb 17 (Reuters) - Iran will never shut down its  Fordow uranium enrichment plant, a senior legislator was quoted  as saying on Sunday, brushing off a demand from world powers who  fear Tehran is working to develop an atomic weapons capability.                

The Islamic republic, which insists its nuclear programme is  purely peaceful, started building the plant inside a mountain in  secret as early as 2006, to protect it from air strikes.                

Last week, Reuters reported world powers were planning to  offer to ease sanctions barring trade in gold and other precious  metals with Iran in return for steps to shut down Fordow.                

Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of parliament's national security  and foreign policy committee, referred to the reported offer on  Sunday and dismissed any idea of a closure, the Iranian  Students' News Agency reported.                

"Fordow will never be shut down because ... our national  duty is to be able to defend our nuclear and vital centres  against an enemy threat," Boroujerdi was quoted as saying by the  agency.                

"This suggestion (shutting down Fordow) is meant to help the  Zionist regime (Israel)," he added.                

Israel has threatened to attack Iran if diplomacy and  sanctions fail to curb its nuclear programme, raising fears of a  regional war.                

The United States and its allies are particularly worried  about Fordow because Iran is refining uranium there to a fissile  concentration of 20 percent, which Iran says it needs for a  medical reactor. Twenty percent purity is only a short technical  step from weapons-grade uranium.                

Western officials said last week the offer to ease sanctions  barring gold and other precious metals trade with Iran would be  presented at Feb. 26 talks between Iran and world powers in  Almaty, Kazakhstan.                

They acknowledged it represented a relatively modest update  to proposals that the six major powers put forward last year.                

Iran's parliament has little control over the Islamic  Republic's foreign policy, which is decided by Supreme Leader  Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.     (Reporting By Yeganeh Torbati; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

Via: HuffingtonPost