President George W. Bush declared Sunday that the United States would not allow Iran to obtain nuclear weapons, while making clear he hoped to resolve the dispute through diplomatic channels. The comments came in excerpts released from a three-part Fox News interview.
The administration holds that Iran, a major oil producer, has no genuine need for civilian nuclear energy and is in fact pursuing atomic weapons capability. Bush said Washington was committed to sustaining international pressure on Tehran to prevent that outcome.
Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi appealed the same day for a negotiated settlement to the country's standoff with the UN's atomic energy watchdog, but ruled out any direct engagement with the United States. He indicated Iran was willing to hold talks with European governments.
The International Atomic Energy Agency had passed a resolution on 18 September demanding that Iran suspend uranium enrichment, a process applicable to both energy production and weapons development. Iran's continued enrichment activity left it facing possible referral to the UN Security Council.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in September 2004, in its own words.