Iranian president says his country will ignore UN resolutions

By: JUSTIN BERGMAN

UNITED NATIONS - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told world leaders his country will defy any further UN Security Council resolutions imposed by 'arrogant powers' seeking to curb its nuclear programme, accusing them of lying and imposing illegal sanctions against Tehran.

He said it is 'high time for these powers to return from the path

of arrogance and obedience to Satan to the path of faith in God'.

Undeterred, France and Germany increased pressure on the Islamic

republic at the UN General Assembly's annual ministerial meeting on

Tuesday, saying they would not accept a nuclear-armed Iran.

 

"Let's not fool ourselves.

 

If Iran were to acquire the nuclear bomb, the consequences would

be disastrous," German Chancellor Angela Merkel told the

session.

 

The high-level General Assembly session yesterday features

speeches by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Cuban Foreign

Minister Felipe Perez Roque.

 

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez had been slotted to speak in

the afternoon, but he pulled out at the last minute, leaving his

foreign minister to take his place.

 

Ahmadinejad on Tuesday also indirectly accused the United States

and Israel of violating human rights by setting up secret prisons,

abducting people, holding trials and enacting secret punishments

without any regard to due process, and tapping phone

conversations.

 

Referring to the US government's policy on Iraq, he said: "They

even oppose the constitution, National Assembly and the government

established by the vote of the people, while they do not even have

the courage to declare their defeat and exit Iraq."

 

Ahmadinejad told leaders that the world powers on the Security

Council had politiciSed Tehran's nuclear programme, making military

threats and imposing sanctions against the country as they demanded

it suspend uranium enrichment.

 

He announced to the assembly that the nuclear issue was now

'closed' as a political issue and Iran would pursue the monitoring

of its nuclear programme "through its appropriate legal path," the

International Atomic Energy, Agency, which is the UN's nuclear

watchdog.

 

IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei and Iranian officials agreed in

July that Tehran would answer questions from agency experts by

December on more than two decades of nuclear activity - most of it

secret until revealed more than four years ago.

 

IAEA technical officials returned to Tehran this week to start

probing outstanding questions, some with possible weapons

applications.

 

The US delegation walked out of the General Assembly chamber

when Ahmadinejad went to the podium, leaving only a low-ranking

note-taker to listen to his speech, which also indirectly accused

the US and Israel of human rights violations.

 

Gonzalo Gallegos, a State Department spokesman, said the US

wanted 'to send him a powerful message'.

 

Nampa-AP

 

Undeterred, France and Germany increased pressure on the Islamic

republic at the UN General Assembly's annual ministerial meeting on

Tuesday, saying they would not accept a nuclear-armed Iran."Let's

not fool ourselves.If Iran were to acquire the nuclear bomb, the

consequences would be disastrous," German Chancellor Angela Merkel

told the session.The high-level General Assembly session yesterday

features speeches by Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Cuban

Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque.Venezuelan President Hugo

Chavez had been slotted to speak in the afternoon, but he pulled

out at the last minute, leaving his foreign minister to take his

place.Ahmadinejad on Tuesday also indirectly accused the United

States and Israel of violating human rights by setting up secret

prisons, abducting people, holding trials and enacting secret

punishments without any regard to due process, and tapping phone

conversations.Referring to the US government's policy on Iraq, he

said: "They even oppose the constitution, National Assembly and the

government established by the vote of the people, while they do not

even have the courage to declare their defeat and exit

Iraq."Ahmadinejad told leaders that the world powers on the

Security Council had politiciSed Tehran's nuclear programme, making

military threats and imposing sanctions against the country as they

demanded it suspend uranium enrichment.He announced to the assembly

that the nuclear issue was now 'closed' as a political issue and

Iran would pursue the monitoring of its nuclear programme "through

its appropriate legal path," the International Atomic Energy,

Agency, which is the UN's nuclear watchdog.IAEA chief Mohamed

ElBaradei and Iranian officials agreed in July that Tehran would

answer questions from agency experts by December on more than two

decades of nuclear activity - most of it secret until revealed more

than four years ago.IAEA technical officials returned to Tehran

this week to start probing outstanding questions, some with

possible weapons applications.The US delegation walked out of the

General Assembly chamber when Ahmadinejad went to the podium,

leaving only a low-ranking note-taker to listen to his speech,

which also indirectly accused the US and Israel of human rights

violations.Gonzalo Gallegos, a State Department spokesman, said the

US wanted 'to send him a powerful message'.Nampa-AP

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