Iran Nuclear Watch: Uranium Enrichment Halt Not a Precondition to Negotiations And Not EVER

Javad Vaeedi, deputy head of Tehranâ€™s national security council and of its nuclear negotiating team, speaks to the students of Tehranâ€™s universities at the Bahman cultural center in Tehran February 14, 2006. Iran could stop enriching uranium at best only as a result of negotiations with big powers, but not as a precondition for such talks as they demand, Vaeedi said on Thursday.

Reuters: No Iran nuclear suspension even after talks: official

Iran is not considering a halt to its nuclear fuel program even after any negotiations with major powers, a senior Iranian official said on Friday.

The Iranian Embassy in Vienna said Tehran’s deputy nuclear negotiator had been misquoted in a German translation of a speech he gave on Thursday that raised the possibility of Iran stopping uranium enrichment as a result of negotiations.

“Iran considers a suspension of uranium enrichment neither as a precondition for talks nor as a result of such talks,” Javad Vaeedi told an Austrian think-tank, according to a corrected text of his speech provided by the embassy.

Oops! Translation error.

So, Iran’s answer to the Big 6 propsoal is as expected – NO!

Iran will NEVER agree to suspend uranium enrichment because they COVET nuclear weapons.

Apparently, Ahmadinejad and the Mullahs wish to stall a formal decision until August, past the G-8 summit in mid-July. The United States will NOT allow this delay.

“And in this framework (Iran) considers the continuation of talks without any precondition as the only peaceful solution to the issue to remove Iran and the EU3’s concerns,” he said, referring to Britain, France and Germany.

A German-language text from the embassy distributed after the speech mistranslated Vaeedi to say: “Iran considers a suspension of uranium enrichment not as a precondition for talks, rather in the best case as a result of talks.”

An embassy spokesman said: “The translation error was ours.” No English text was provided and a running oral translation of the speech was drowned out by applause at the pro-Iranian think tank. Iranian officials were not available after the address.

Vaeedi also said Iran was taking its time to reply to an unprecedented offer from six major powers of economic incentives to halt nuclear work in order “to maximize the chances of success of this proposal.”

Tehran has said it will reply by August 22. The six big powers want an answer by mid-July.

Time for negotiations is OVER.

Next stop is the United Nations Security Council and SANCTIONS against Iran.