Iranian interior minister arrives in China

China's official Xinhua News Agency quotes Mostafa Pour Mohammadi as pledging country will cooperate with UN.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Iran Nuclear 224.88 (photo credit: AP [file])
Iran Nuclear 224.88
(photo credit: AP [file])
Iran's interior minister arrived in Beijing for nuclear consultations on Thursday, a day after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned against UN Security Council intervention in his country's disputed nuclear activities. Following his arrival, Mostafa Pour Mohammadi said Iran was "willing to enhance cooperation with relevant international organizations and we welcome full inspections on our nuclear activities," according to China's official Xinhua News Agency. "We will conduct nuclear activities legally, abiding by a series of international laws and regulations," Xinhua quoted Pour Mohammadi as saying. "We consider it is beneficial to us as well to cooperate with international community," he was quoted as saying. Pour Mohammadi is visiting for two days as Ahmadinejad's special envoy, and was scheduled to meet Friday with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi and senior foreign policy aide Tang Jiaxuan. China is one of five permanent veto-holding members of the UN Security Council. Ahmadinejad warned Wednesday that while Iran wished to continue cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, "others should not intervene." The same day, Iran's top nuclear negotiator said any new UN sanctions against the Islamic republic would end its cooperation with the organization's nuclear watchdog. The IAEA issued a report in August describing improved cooperation from Iran in revealing the state of its nuclear program, but the United States still says it is aimed at developing weapons and has called for further sanctions. Calling sanctions "not the most effective measures to solve problems," Pour Mohammadi reiterated Iran's denial that it is seeking to build nuclear weapons. "I want to reiterate our position that we develop nuclear program only for peaceful purpose and that is our legal right," Pour Mohammadi was quoted as saying. China, which is investing heavily in Iran's oil and gas industry, has urged Iran to cooperate with UN inspectors but has thwarted attempts by fellow permanent UN Security Council members - the US, Britain and France - to impose harsh UN sanctions on Iran.