President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Monday ruled out talks on Iran's “undeniable” nuclear rights, as world powers await Tehran's new proposals for the basis of fresh talks on its controversial atomic drive. “In our view the nuclear question is finished. We will not negotiate over Iran's undeniable rights,” the hard-liner told a Tehran news conference. “What we have announced is cooperation in two parts: cooperation on peaceful use of clean atomic energy and preventing a proliferation of atomic weapons,” Ahmadinejad said. Ahmadinejad said Tehran would continue cooperating with the UN nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which has been probing Iran's nuclear program for years. But “if anyone wants to interfere in the nuclear program beyond the law, that path is blocked,” he warned. “From our point of view the nuclear file does not exist.. but what exists is the file of animosity.” He underlined the Islamic republic's stand just hours before the IAEA board of governors gathered in Vienna for a meeting to probe claims that Iran conducted experiments aimed at making a nuclear bomb. IAEA chief Mohamed Elbaradei said at the start of the meeting that there was a “stalemate” with Iran over the nuclear issue and urged Tehran to “substantially re-engage” with the IAEA. Elbaradei said: “Iran has not cooperated with the agency in connection with the remaining issues, detailed fully and completely in the agency's reports, which need to be clarified in order to exclude the possibility of there being military dimensions to Iran's nuclear program.” Elbaradei also dismissed allegations by some of IAEA's member states, especially France, that he withheld key evidence on Iran's alleged weaponization studies as “politically motivated and totally baseless.” Paris insisted the IAEA had been withholding information on Iran. Ahmadinejad said Tehran was ready for talks on global issues in what he called a “fair and logical” framework, and that he was willing to hold a public meeting with US President Barack Obama in the presence of mass media. He suggested that this could take place at the UN General Assembly in New York later this month. “Any issue can be discussed but in front of media,” he said, adding that Iran will also “hold talks with the United States at different levels if it serves Iranians' interests.” Iran is due to present a set of proposals to world powers which have offered talks over its nuclear program but have also threatened further sanctions if negotiations fail.
