By IRNA
Tehran : The Iranian Armed Forces enjoy the necessary deterrent power to confront any threat, Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad-Ali Hosseini said on Sunday.
Speaking to domestic and foreign reporters at his weekly press conference, he said recent “media threats” against Iran were “part of a psychological warfare with no basis.”
Commenting on the possibility of Iran suspending uranium enrichment activities, the spokesman said, “This is an old issue. Even the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief (Mohamed ElBaradei) has admitted that the issue of suspension is an old matter.
“Suspension has no place in Iran’s peaceful nuclear policies,” Hosseini said, adding, “We should talk of new initiatives and remove outstanding issues based on this framework.”
Referring to the latest agreements reached between Iran and IAEA, Hosseini said that the agency has stressed the need for “continuation of the trend.”
As for the exact date of the next summit of the Caspian Sea littoral states, Hosseini said, “Efforts are being made to hold the summit in mid October.”
Commenting on President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s scheduled speech at the Colombia University due to be delivered on Monday on the sidelines of the president’s visit to New York to attend the UN General Assembly meeting, Hosseini said, “Despite US efforts to sabotage the program, we are trying to make it anyway.”
As for the visit to Tehran of a French special envoy to discuss Lebanon situation, the spokesman said decisions on the visit would be made later after Tehran assesses recent “contradictory moves” of Paris.
“We have lately witnessed some contradictory stands taken by French officials. Although some of the French authorities have tried to amend those stands to some extent, there were harsh positions taken on Iran’s peaceful nuclear activities.
“They have also made efforts to impose more sanctions on Iran beyond the framework of the UN resolution,” said the spokesman, adding, “All these moves should be assessed by Iran and the decision on the French special envoy’s visit will be made afterward.”