Influential Iranian lawmakers on Saturday criticised a U.N.-drafted agreement that requires Tehran to send its atomic stockpile abroad for further processing, Reuters qouted the student news agency ISNA as reporting. Their comments were reported a day after Iran missed a deadline for responding to the International Atomic Energy Agency on the deal, which requires it to cut an atomic stockpile the West fears could be used to make weapons. Iran said its answer would be given next week. "Iran needs its 3.5 percent enriched uranium for use in our power stations. Consequently it is in Iran"s interest to buy nuclear fuel," said Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of parliament"s National Security and Foreign Affairs committee, quoted by ISNA. The agreement requires Iran to send 1.2 tonnes of its known 1.5-tonne stockpile of low-enriched uranium (LEU) to Russia and France by the end of the year, Western diplomats say. -- SPA