Rouhani: Iran not to surrender to any power

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani underlined Tehran’s steadfast position on defending its nuclear rights, and said the country will never succumb to the pressures exerted by the world powers to cross over its redlines. “We have told the negotiating sides in word and action that threats, sanctions, humiliation and discrimination will never be effective and Iran will not and have not surrendered to the threats of any power,” Rouhani said, addressing the parliament in Tehran on Sunday. “Rationality, logic and wisdom are on Iran’s negotiating table and it attends talks with others with the same leverage,” he added. “The Iranian nation’s rights, including the nuclear rights within the framework of the international laws, enrichment on Iran’s soil and the national interests, are our redlines and they cannot be crossed over since we do not accept to be discriminated against and the Iranian nation should enjoy its legal rights,” Rouhani underlined. He referred to the talks between Iran and the world powers in New York and Geneva in recent months, and said, “We have held three rounds of talks by now and today Iran’s plan is on the table.” Iran and the Group 5+1 (the US, Russia, France, Britain and China plus Germany) ended their fresh round of talks in Geneva early Sunday morning. Following the talks, Iranian Foreign Minister and Top Negotiator in talks with the world powers Mohammad Javad Zarif underlined that the Islamic Republic insists on the restoration of its rights to use nuclear technology and is meantime, prepared to remove the concerns of the other sides. “Iran insists on its technology and rights and meanwhile, we are ready to obviate others’ concerns,” Zarif told Iranian reporters after meeting EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton in Geneva on Sunday. Asked about the remarks made by a number of European officials on the contents of the talks between Iran and the world powers, he said, “The points said about the understanding and differences (between the two sides) are not so much based on reality since we speak about a plan on the whole.” “It is a rule in the negotiations that while you haven’t agreed on everything, you haven’t agreed on anything,” Zarif said.