Former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani warned the United States and Europe on Friday that the Iranian nuclear issue was a "mined and dangerous field", the official IRNA news agency reported.

"The field is mined and dangerous, which if you fail to move through properly, you are feared to inflict a dear cost on yourself, the region and the world," Rafsanjani was quoted as saying in an address to Washington and the European Union (EU) at a Friday sermon.

Rafsanjani, chairman of the powerful Expediency Council, reiterated that Iran was not to surrender whenever the West took up "leverages and daggers".

"If your intention is intimidation, you should know that Iranians do not fear and if your intention is to meet your objectives through this way, you should know for certain that one can not talk and negotiate through intimidation," Rafsanjani said.

He stressed that the Iranian government would protect the Iranian nation's rights and prevent violation of the country's rights by others.

On the other hand, Rafsanjani also advised Iranian officials to "be patient enough in using the leverages without provoking any tension."

The Iranian nuclear standoff was escalated after the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on last Saturday adopted a resolution on the issue drafted by the EU.

The IAEA resolution accuses Iran of breaching international nuclear safeguards and committing suspicious nuclear activities, warning to refer Iran's case to the UN Security Council if Tehran did not suspend activities related to uranium enrichment before the agency's meeting in November.

Iran rejected the resolution and urged the IAEA and the EU to " correct" it, threatening to cancel all of its voluntary and temporary concessions, including the implementation of the additional protocol of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

The Iranian Majlis (Parliament) on Wednesday approved a motion which demanded discussion on a plan to press the government to suspend the implementation of the additional protocol be started immediately.

The EU expects to dissuade Tehran from building nuclear fuel cycles, including uranium enrichment. However, Iran insists that it will never give up legal rights of peaceful use of the nuclear technology.

The United States accuses Iran of developing nuclear weapons under the cover of generating electricity, a charge rejected by Tehran.

Source: Xinhua