Iran sticks to nuclear rights

Iranian President Hassan Rohani on Sunday reaffirmed that his country would not give up its rights to uranium enrichment for peaceful purposes. "The nuclear activities of Iran are, and will remain to be, purely civilian; this is why Iran will stick to its nuclear rights including uranium enrichment at home," he said. President Rohani made the comments during his meeting with Yang Jiechi, member of China's State Council and personal envoy of Chinese President Xi Jinping. On the relations with China, President Rohani said: "The two countries maintain strategic relations and we seek to further expand these ties in various dimensions." On his part, the Chinese senior official said his country respects Iran's rights to civilian nuclear energy including domestic uranium enrichment. Iran, thanks to the wisdom of its new administration, defended its rights well during the recent round of talks with the P5+1 in Geneva and defeated the Western party, Yang said. He conveyed the greetings of Chinese President Xi Jinping to President Rohani, noting that Rohani's win in the presidential race put Iran on the right track for advancement and development. Yang expressed Beijing's desire to enhance the friendly ties with Tehran and cement cooperation in a range of regional and international of common concern, notably the crisis in Syria and the combat against terrorism.