Iran's Foreign Ministry on Sunday played down a remark by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to pull out of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty if the country feels it is coming under unfair pressure. "The NPT is an international commitment and we are committed to that," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told a weekly news conference. Ahmadinejad told a rally in Tehran on Saturday Iran might review its commitment to the NPT if the West used the treaty to pressure Tehran to abandon its nuclear programme. Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said Iran had ordered resumption of uranium enrichment activities in its Natanz facility. But he too, said Iran would continue to respect the treaty. "We have informed the IAEA about the order. Iran's peaceful activities will continue based on the NPT," Mottaki told the students news agency "ISNA." Asefi told the news conference a date had yet to be set for the resumption of activities at Natanz. "... We will act based on our responsibilities within the framework of the NPT and the safeguards agreement," he said.
