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Source: http://nytimes.com/2005/08/10/international/middleeast/10iran.html
Iran Rejects Halt in Atom Activity, But Likely to Continue Talks
(New York Times) Thomas Fuller - Iran on Tuesday rejected calls by European leaders to halt its renewed nuclear activities, but indicated a willingness to continue negotiations over its program. "There is no reason to suspend this activity," Sirus Naser, Iran's chief delegate to the International Atomic Energy Agency, said after an emergency meeting of the agency in Vienna. Diplomats from 35 countries sought consensus on a resolution condemning Iran's move to restart the conversion of uranium on Monday. But the developing nations, represented by Malaysia, issued a joint statement affirming the "basic and inalienable right of all member states to develop atomic energy for peaceful purposes." President Bush said that if Iran did not cooperate, UN sanctions were "a potential consequence." In Moscow, the Russian Foreign Ministry also issued a toughly worded statement that called on Iran to "stop work that has begun on uranium conversion without delay."