Iran ready to hold talks with 5+1 group

13 April 2011 | 15:17 Code : 11837 Latest Headlines

PressTV--A senior Iranian official says the Islamic Republic and the 5+1 group are ready to hold the next round of multifaceted talks, but the time and venue have not been decided yet.

The ِِِdeputy secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Ali Baqeri, said on Tuesday that the time and place for the talks between Iran and the 5+1 group — Russia, China, Britain, France, the United States, and Germany — would be decided in the future, IRNA reported.

He stated that nuclear activities are a necessity for the country and noted that nothing can hinder Tehran's nuclear program.

He went on to say that the possession of a nuclear arsenal does not guarantee security for any country, and the Islamic Republic has never sought nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction.

Earlier in the day, Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Ali Asghar Soltanieh, said Iran was ready to hold talks when asked about Tehran's response to a letter from EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton to the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Saeed Jalili.

He said, "Iran is always ready for talks with the 5+1 group, based on its rights and NPT regulations."

Iran recently announced plans to build "four to five" nuclear research reactors, following the successful testing of domestically manufactured second and third generation centrifuges.

Tehran also announced that fuel production and uranium enrichment to a purity level of 20 percent would not be halted.

As a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and a member of the IAEA, Iran insists on its legal right to produce and use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.