Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned on 27 October 2004 that Tehran would abandon nuclear negotiations if Western parties kept pressing for a long-term halt to uranium enrichment, calling such a demand illogical.
The statement coincided with a five-hour session in Vienna where British, French, and German officials presented Iranian counterparts with a proposed arrangement: indefinitely suspend enrichment in exchange for nuclear technology and a shield from potential UN sanctions. The round ended without a formal agreement.
Iranian delegate Syrus Nasseri called the session constructive and said a follow-up meeting would be convened "very soon" by one of the three European states. Senior nuclear official Hossein Moussavian confirmed some progress had been made but said Iran had not yet given a final answer on the enrichment suspension.
In Tehran, the chairman of parliament's foreign affairs and national security committee insisted that European recognition of Iran's right to enrich uranium was a prerequisite for any deal, and predicted that a bill compelling the government to resume enrichment in defiance of the IAEA would pass when debated the following Sunday.
Iran also disclosed that a heavy-water facility under construction near Arak would begin operating within a month. Washington has long accused Tehran of using its nuclear program as cover for weapons development.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in October 2004, in its own words.