Iran’s continued bellicosity and defiance of the UN is an intriguing contrast to Israel’s apparent naive willingness to accept UN-sponsored Lebanese (i.e., Hizballah) troops on its border. And both tend toward the same end. From AFP, with thanks to Sr. Soph:
IRAN today repeated its refusal to suspend uranium enrichment activities as called for in a UN resolution, threatening instead to withdraw from the International Atomic Energy Agency.
“Iran doesn’t accept suspending its uranium enrichment,” the official IRNA agency quoted parliamentary speaker Gholam-Ali Hadad-Adel as telling Parliament.“If the result of our being part of international organisations and the IAEA is to be deprived of our absolute right (in nuclear matters), there is no reason for us to continue to be part of such organisations,” he said.
The UN Security Council has given Iran until August 31 to halt enrichment and reprocessing activities or face possible sanctions.
The resolution was pushed through after Iran ignored a previous non-binding deadline and failed to respond to an international offer of incentives in exchange for a moratorium on nuclear fuel work.
Iran has repeatedly insisted its nuclear programme is for civil purposes only despite Western concerns that it may be cover for an attempt to develop the bomb.