Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki on Saturday welcomed a proposal by International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei for Iran to be able to conduct small-scale enrichment within its territory, terming it as "a step forward."
"We welcome our friends' positive view toward the issue of enrichment inside Iran and regard it as a step forward. We are still ready to continue negotiations," Mottaki said, according to Irna.
"We have always held the view that with regard to the nuclear issue there are two sides to be considered: one is to remove concerns of certain countries on Iran's peaceful nuclear activities by providing necessary guarantees and the other is to defend the legitimate right of the Iranian nation to pursue nuclear energy for peaceful purposes," he added.
He said Iran was determined to find a suitable formula for building confidence on Iran's peaceful nuclear activities that would at the same time preserve its nuclear right.
Referring to Iran's recent resumption of small-scale uranium enrichment at its Natanz facility, Mottaki said, "We resumed this work within our territory based on our legal right and within the framework of the Non-Proliferation Treaty. But we are not at the industrial level of fuel production yet."
He said Iran is ready to continue talks with its friends to reach a comprehensive formula.
