Nuclear summit to have no impact on Iran's atomic programme

Tehran said Tuesday that the outcome of the nuclear security summit in Washington would have no impact on Iran's atomic programmes, DPA reported.

"Even approval of sanctions would have no impact on our nation's will to follow our nuclear rights," Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast told reporters in Tehran.

Iran has persistently dismissed international concerns that it is secretly developing nuclear weapons, and said it would not abandon its civil nuclear programme in response to pressure from the world powers.

Mehmanparast said that instead of focusing on Iran, the Washington summit should rather tackle Israel's nuclear arsenal and disrespect for the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) that he said is the main obstacle to nuclear disarmament.

The spokesman further doubted that China, which is a strategic ally of the Islamic state, would back the US and European drive for renewed UN Security Council sanctions against Iran. US officials Monday said China was ready to work with the US on possible sanctions.

He said that both China and Russia would attend the two-day international nuclear disarmament conference starting on April 17 in Tehran.

Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency said Monday that Iran would ignore any decisions taken by world powers at the nuclear security summit.

"The results of the Washington summit will not be binding (for Iran)," Ali-Asghar Soltanieh said.

Soltanieh added that as the United States had invited the participants on a "selective" basis, there would be no obligation for countries not invited - like Iran - to follow the decisions taken at the summit.

Mehmanparast said that at least 15 foreign ministers would attend the Tehran nuclear disarmament conference, showing the international interest in the meeting.

Although the Tehran conference is supposed to deal with nuclear disarmament, observers say that the meeting is another effort by Iran to seek international acknowledgement for its nuclear policies and expose renewed sanctions as irrelevant.