British Foreign Ministry calls Iran's nuclear announcement "deeply worrying"

The British Foreign Ministry on Monday described as "deeply worrying" Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's announcement that his country would step up its uranium enrichment process.

A spokesperson for the ministry said: "Ahmadinejad suggested last week that Iran might accept the deal proposed by the IAEA last October to send fuel abroad for enriching. A few days later he has rejected that proposal and ordered that Iran increase its enrichment to 20 percent from tomorrow."

The spokesman said these latest statements by Iran are deeply worrying. Contrary to Iranian assertions, this enriched uranium could not be used for the Teheran Research Reactor as Iran does not have the technology to manufacture it into fuel rods, said the spokesman.

Instead, enriching to 20 percent would just add to the catalogue of concerns about a nuclear program with no civilian application, in a country building nuclear facilities in secret and refusing to answer IAEA questions about weapons-related activity, he added.

The spokesman said it is time for Iran to move away from contradictory rhetoric and to start engaging with the IAEA and the international community. Iran needs to address the legitimate concerns about its program and to start restoring trust in its intentions, he said.

Earlier on Sunday, President Ahmadinejad ordered that Iran start work on enriching uranium to a purity of 20 percent.

Iran also handed over a letter on Monday to the IAEA informing the UN nuclear watchdog about the Islamic Republic's plan to produce 20-percent enriched uranium inside the country. In the letter, Iran asked the IAEA inspectors to monitor the enrichment process.

Source: Xinhua