BERLIN, Jan. 22--World powers played down prospects of a deal on new sanctions against Iran ahead of a meeting on Tuesday aimed at ratcheting up pressure on Tehran to curb its nuclear work.
Ahead of the meeting, Iran reiterated that new international sanctions would not stop it from pursuing its “legitimate and legal rights“ to a nuclear program, Reuters reported.
China says it still expects the Iran nuclear issue to be settled through diplomatic efforts as foreign ministers from six nations prepare for discussions on the issue in Berlin on Tuesday.
Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Jiang Yu told reporters: “China views the conference as a diplomatic effort on the Iran nuclear issue and hopes it will be a serious and objective assessment of the current situation.“
“China expects the meeting to produce diplomatic accomplishments that will be conducive to a proper settlement of the Iran nuclear issue,“ she said, adding that China will endorse proposals and suggestions that will help realize the goal.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, arriving in Berlin for the meeting of foreign ministers from the five permanent UN Security Council members and Germany, said powers still had “some way to go“ in agreeing a third UN sanctions resolution, wire services reported.
Host Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he hoped the meeting, which starts at 4:30 p.m. (1530 GMT), would show Iran that the international community was united in its concern over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear drive.
“I can’t promise we will come out of this meeting with an agreement on how to proceed in the UN Security Council, that we will agree on the text of a resolution and I can’t tell you what new sanctions will look like,“ German Foreign Minister Steinmeier told ARD public television.
“But I am very optimistic that we can get results and show Iran that our concerns cannot be ignored, that the international community, including Russia and China, is united,“ he said.
Washington has spearheaded the drive for more punitive measures and is keen to ensure a new resolution tightens the noose on more Iranian state banks.
Russia and China, both commercial partners of Iran, have hardened their opposition to tougher sanctions since a US intelligence report last month said Iran had halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003.
While both appear willing to accept a new resolution, they are seen as unlikely to accept measures that would hurt economic ties.
“China hopes it can achieve a resolution that raises pressure but does not risk serious economic fallout,“ said Yin Gang, an analyst at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) Director General Mohamed ElBaradei won agreement from Iran this month to answer questions about its past covert nuclear work within four weeks and some countries may prefer to wait before agreeing new steps.
The foreign ministers last met to discuss Iran in September in New York and have made little tangible progress since then.
China said on Tuesday that the nuclear standoff, which dates back to 2002, had reached a “critical moment“.

Gholamhossein Elham

TEHRAN, Jan. 22--Government Spokesman Gholamhossein Elham said on Tuesday there are no differences among institutions of the Islamic system.
“All bodies cooperate with each other and have interaction for serving the Iranian nation,“ Elham told reporters while commenting on President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s letter to Majlis Speaker Gholamali Haddad Adel about the laws passed by the parliament on allocations from the country’s Forex Reserve Fund, Presstv reported.
“Withdrawals from the foreign currency reserves would lead to inflation,“ he said, adding that the government has to be sensitive about this issue.
He noted that in his letter to the speaker, the president had not said that the government would not abide by the Majlis ratification; rather, based on his rights and obligations, he pointed out to the Majlis that the ratification was against the constitution.
Elham noted that the Guardians Council had made no comment on the legislation because of shortage of time.
“All state bodies should follow the guidelines of the Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and abide by the laws,“ he said, adding that the government also laid emphasis on everybody’s commitment to the constitution.
The spokesman also played down the impact of any new UN Security Council resolution against Iran’s nuclear program.
Elham said a new Security Council resolution was ’unlikely’ and any such move would “weaken the credibility of this international body and of the International Atomic Energy Agency“.
His comment preceded talks between major powers in Berlin on possible new sanctions.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier had invited his counterparts from the five permanent members of the Security Council--Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States--for a meeting on Tuesday.
“The Iranian nation is moving toward fulfilling its goals within the framework of its legal rights,“ he said.
“Adoption of a possible new resolution will not have any effect on our people and the involvement of the UN Security Council has no justification.“

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki (r) shakes hands with Bulgarian MP Solomon Passy in Tehran on Monday.

TEHRAN, Jan. 22--Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on Monday discussed bilateral and regional issues with a visiting Bulgarian parliamentarian.
According to Foreign Ministry’s Information and Media Department, Mottaki said there are good potentials for developing ties between Tehran and Sofia in the framework of common interests, IRNA reported.
Referring to the wrong policies of the US in the region, Mottaki said because of its lack of proper knowledge about the region and unilateral approaches, the US is facing many problems and the roots of these problems lay in not paying attention to the wishes of people and countries of the region.
Commenting on the Zionist Israeli regime’s crimes in Gaza, Mottaki said, “Growing crimes of the Zionists in Gaza is not in conformity with any standard and we ask the United Nations to fulfill its obligations concerning the oppressed people of Gaza.“
The Bulgarian parliamentary deputy, for his part, expressed satisfaction over the growing trend of mutual ties.
“Relations between the two countries have positive and constructive outlooks and your visit to Sofia will face with a warm welcome tomorrow and the Bulgarian senior officials are ready to discuss cooperation with you in economic and cultural fields,“ he said.
Solomon Passy, who heads Bulgarian Parliament’s Foreign Policy Commission, said, “Iran has an important role in the Middle East and regional developments and is also an effective and undeniable player in the international arena. We want cooperation between Tehran and Sofia to increase in different international and regional arenas.“
Also on Monday, Passy conferred with Secretary of Supreme National Security Council Saeed Jalili.
Passy underscored the vast grounds for mutual cooperation, describing the future of bilateral ties as ’bright’.
He called Iran’s position in the region and international community ’important’ and underlined the necessity of vast cooperation between Iran and the European Union.
Jalili emphasized that Iran and Bulgaria have good potentials for cooperation and added that the two countries’ ties can enter a new stage.
Referring to Iran’s high degree of political stability and appropriate infrastructures for sustainable development such as huge energy resources, Jalili said Iran plays a key role in supplying energy and providing its security.

TEHRAN, Jan. 22--Defense Minister Brigadier General Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said Iran’s military products are all made domestically
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Najjar said Iran’s defense doctrine is totally deterrent, IRNA reported.
On the Zionist Israeli regime, he said its people are disappointed at the government and the high rate of outflow from Israel substantiates this claim. “After its humiliating defeat in the 33-day war in Lebanon, the Zionist regime has been caught in a quagmire,“ he said.
Recent measures adopted by the Zionist Israeli regime against Iran along with its allegations are only a psychological warfare aimed at boosting the morale of its forces.
“Iran is not producing nuclear weapons and will continue the peaceful use of nuclear energy,“ he said.

TEHRAN, Jan. 22--Iran received the fifth shipment of nuclear fuel from Russia on Tuesday for a power plant being constructed in the southern port of Bushehr.
The 11-ton consignment of enriched uranium arrived at the light-water Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant on Tuesday morning.
The remainder of the fuel will arrive in three separate shipments in coming weeks, IRIB reported.
“Of the 82 tons of initial fuel needed for the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, 55 tons have been shipped to Iran so far,“ it said.
Iran received the fourth shipment of nuclear fuel from Russia on Sunday.
The first shipment arrived on Dec. 17 after months of dispute between the two countries, allegedly over delayed construction payments for the reactor.
Iran has said Bushehr, the country’s first nuclear reactor, will begin operating in the summer of 2008, producing half its 1,000-megawatt capacity of electricity.