TEHRAN, Nov. 4--A presidential envoy met with Cuban President Fidel Castro in Havana on Thursday and said Iran’s nuclear program will not be deviate from the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Saeed Jalili, also deputy foreign minister for European and American affairs, added that Iran is fully cooperating with the UN nuclear watchdog and that it has voluntarily implemented the NPT’s Additional Protocol, IRNA reported.
He, however, stressed that the Iranian nation is determined to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
For his part, Castro declared his support for Iran and said the West intends to monopolize nuclear energy to make others dependent on them.
“Once the oil resources are dried up, they would have such a monopoly. Therefore, they do not wish other countries to have access to nuclear energy,“ he said.
In his address to the World Summit in New York last September, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the Iranian nuclear program is transparent and open to inspection of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
“Cameras of the UN Agency are installed on all nuclear sites for monitoring them. The Iranian nuclear program is in line with Safeguards Agreement of the IAEA,“ he said.
The Iranian envoy has visited Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela where he discussed bilateral, regional and international issues with high-ranking officials.
Also on Saturday, Jalili conferred with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in Caracas.
The trip is in line with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s policy of expanding relations with other nations on the bases of friendship and justice.

LONDON, Nov. 4--EU foreign ministers are to discuss Iran policy on Monday in Brussels where conclusions are expected, Britain’s Europe Minister Douglas Alexander said.
“The (General Affairs) Council will focus on how the EU should take forward its relationship with Iran, taking into account developments in the EU’s areas of concern,“ Alexander said in a statement to the British Parliament published Friday, IRNA reported.
He said areas of concern include “Iran’s nuclear program, human rights record, approach towards terrorism, and opposition to the Middle East peace process“.
Alexander added that foreign ministers from the 25-member bloc would also discuss recent remarks made by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad about Israel’s right to exist.
It is not known whether the conclusions from the discussions will go any further than calling on Iran to return to talks about its nuclear program with the EU-3 (Britain, France and Germany).
During parliamentary business questions on Thursday, leader of the House of Commons, Geoff Hoon, also revealed that Foreign Secretary Jack Straw set out several concerns about Iran at Prime Minister Tony Blair’s weekly cabinet meeting.
In response to calls to allow MPs to debate relations with Iran, Hoon said he wanted to emphasize again the ’importance’ that the British government attaches to the situation in Iran, which he referred to as ’disturbing’ but set no date for a debate.
On Tuesday, Foreign Office Minister Lord Triesman told parliament that the British government, which is the current president of the EU, was adopting a cautious diplomatic approach for peacefully resolving the issue.
“Cutting links with Iran will do nothing to advance those objectives. The United States, which has no contacts with Iran, continues to urge us to maintain our contacts with Iran to try to keep some dialogue going,“ Triesman said.

Manouchehr Mottaki

Amr Mousa

TEHRAN, Nov. 4--Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki reviewed regional developments, especially Iraq, in a telephone conversation with Arab League Secretary-General Amr Mousa on Wednesday.
According to the Foreign Ministry’s Information and Press Bureau, Mousa underlined Iran’s significant role in Iraq’s developments and said Arab League will cooperate with Iran to promote national reconciliation in Iraq in cooperation with all Iraqi political, ethnic and religious groups.
Calling the role of Iran in Iraq’s development as very significant and constructive, he called for continued cooperation between Arab League and Iran in bringing about unity, peace and national reconciliation in Iraq.
The Iranian foreign minister, for his part, welcomed continued consultations between Iran and Arab League and said this could help the Iraqi nation decide its fate.
Referring to the outcome of his meetings with leaders of five Arab states, Mottaki said Iraq’s neighboring states should cooperate to ensure the restoration of law and order to that country.
The two sides also agreed to continue consultations on expansion of mutual cooperation during the upcoming visit of Amr Mousa to Tehran.

TEHRAN, Nov. 4--Head of Majlis National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Alaeddin Boroujerdi on Wednesday looked forward to the growing trend of cooperation between the two countries.
In a meeting with Swiss Ambassador to Tehran Phillipe Welti, Boroujerdi said Iran’s foreign policy is positive and in line with expansion of ties with all countries, based on the principles of respect for mutual interests and non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, IRNA reported.
A report released by Majlis Media Department said Boroujerdi referred to Iran’s attempt to safeguard and promote peace in the region and world, and declared Iran’s opposition to nuclear weapons and terrorism.
He pointed out that Iran is one of the initiators of the idea of a Middle East free of nuclear weapons.
“Iran has lost a great number of high-ranking officials in terrorist acts and is a victim of terrorism,“ he said.
He recalled the country’s constructive collaboration in defusing the crises of Afghanistan and Iraq, and said Iran’s role in promoting stability and tranquility in both countries proves that it is following a rational policy based on established international laws.
On Iran’s nuclear issue, he said, “Iran has been a member of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) for 30 years and committed to using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes according to the regulations laid down in the treaty.
“Despite the Majlis unwillingness to ratify the Additional Protocol, Iran is enforcing it voluntarily. However, in case the nuclear dossier is referred to the United Nations Security Council, Iran will suspend the implementation of the Additional Protocol.“
For his part, Welti said the two countries have always enjoyed a growing and constructive trend in bilateral ties.
The diplomat added that the perception of every visitor arriving in Iran is different from that of the world about the country.
Welti referred to the crucial role of the parliaments of both countries in further bolstering relations and thanked Boroujerdi for extending an invitation to his Swiss counterpart to visit Tehran.

Qorbanali Dorri-Najafabadi

TEHRAN, Nov. 4--Prosecutor General Qorbanali Dorri-Najafabadi said Iran’s complaint against ousted dictator Saddam Hussein would be presented to the Iraqi court on behalf of Iranian citizens.
In an interview with ISNA on Thursday, Dorri-Najafabadi noted that the complaint would focus on four main aspects, namely war crimes, genocide, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.
Stressing that there is no qualified international court to deal with Saddam’s crimes, he said should the court deal with Iran’s complaint, it would be provided with proofs in the form of victims of the eight-year imposed war or their representatives.
“If the court deals with our case, we are ready to move on to the next stages. Else, the rights of Iranian citizens are conserved in a qualified domestic court,“ he said.
Dorri-Najafabadi further said this is “an opportunity“ to judge the court’s credentials, adding that the judges should consider thousands of Iranian martyrs and war veterans who succumbed to chemical wounds suffered during the war.
He added that if the court were to observe international rules and conventions, it should help compensate the victims.
Asked about the complaint’s repercussions for Iran, Dorri-Najafabadi said, “We have filed this complaint on behalf of our citizens, and not the Islamic Republic of Iran. Therefore, there would be no undesirable repercussions.“

TEHRAN, Nov. 4--President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani in a telephone conversation late on Thursday congratulated each other and their respective nations and governments on the auspicious occasion of Eid Al-Fitr.
The Iranian president said that in light of extensive capacity for cooperation, the joint economic commission should be activated and regular contacts should follow to raise the level of mutual ties, IRNA reported.
Ahmadinejad declared Iran’s interest in economic cooperation, particularly in oil, gas and tourism sectors, and said exchange of views among Muslim countries would promote peace and tranquility in the region.
“Both sides should work to expand cooperation to benefit the two nations and the entire region,“ he said.
For his part, Al-Thani emphasized the need for further expansion of relations and called for exchange of views between the two states, particularly with regard to regional issues.

TEHRAN, Nov. 4--A mild earthquake measuring 3.4 on the Richter scale jolted the suburbs of Iran’s western city of Qasr-e Shirin in Kermanshah province on Thursday.
According to Kermanshah’s Seismological Network affiliated to the Geophysics Institute of Tehran University, the tremor hit the outskirts of the city at 5:11 hours local time (00:41 GMT), IRNA reported.
Quakes of varying magnitudes often occur in Iran, which is situated on some of the world’s most active seismic fault-lines.

TEHRAN, Nov. 4--Thirteen repentant members of the terrorist group Mujahideen Khalq Organization (MKO) returned home from Iraq on Wednesday with the assistance of international rescue institutions.
The returnees had long requested the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to arrange for their return to Iran, IRNA reported.
The Iranian government has announced that all repentant members of the terrorist group can return and live normal lives.
Upon arrival in Tehran, the 13 MKO members were brought to Iranian hospitals to undergo medical examination and treatment of any health problem contracted during several years of living in harsh conditions.
The families of repentant members, who were on hand to welcome them upon their arrival at Mehrabad International Airport, were allowed to visit them in the hospital on Thursday.
In an interview with IRNA, some of the returnees expressed grave concern over the fate of other repentant MKO members who are still in Iraq.
According to them, except for a limited number of terrorists acting in Iraq as US spies, intelligence agents and/or subversives, the majority of MKO members have expressed the desire to return home.
A list of the names of 13 MKO members who have returned can be obtained at the ICRC, but these members themselves are reluctant to reveal their names because of any backlash or simply because they wish to start life anew.