Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad denied his country was building an atomic bomb and said in a TV interview aired on Sunday that Iran was not on a path to war with the US.
A group of about 40 elected officials and civic leaders started protesting outside New York's Columbia University even as the hardline leader was en route to the city for planned speeches at the school and the UN that have aroused a storm of opposition. Ahmadinejad was scheduled to speak to students and teachers yesterday during a forum.
During an interview with CBS' 60 Minutes, Ahmadinejad said Iran was not building a bomb.
"Well, you have to appreciate we don't need a nuclear bomb. We don't need that. What need do we have for a bomb?" he said in the interview, taped last Thursday.
Questioned repeatedly about allegations that Iran was developing such a weapon, Ahmadinejad replied: "It is a firm `no.' I'm going to be much firmer now. In political relations right now, the nuclear bomb is of no use. If it was useful it would have prevented the downfall of the Soviet Union."
He added that "the time of the bomb is passed."
His visit has caused a stir in New York. Tensions are high between Washington and Tehran over US accusations that Iran is secretly trying to develop nuclear weapons and helping Shiite militias in Iraq that target US troops -- claims Iran denies.
Ahmadinejad said the American people have been denied "correct information," and his visit will give them a chance to hear a different voice, the official IRNA news agency reported.
During his interview with 60 Minutes, Ahmadinejad said: "It's wrong to think that Iran and the US are walking toward war. Who says so? Why should we go to war? There is no war in the offing."
Washington has said it is addressing the Iran situation diplomatically, rather than militarily, but US officials also say that all options are open. The commander of the US military forces in the Middle East said he does not believe tension will lead to war.
"This constant drum beat of conflict is what strikes me, which is not helpful and not useful," Admiral William Fallon, head of US Central Command, said in an interview with al-Jazeera television, which made a partial transcript available on Sunday.
Ahmadinejad is scheduled to address the UN Assembly today -- his third time attending the New York meeting in three years.
His request to lay a wreath at Ground Zero, site of the World Trade Center 2001 terror attacks, was denied by city officials and condemned by politicians. After the Sept. 11 attacks, hundreds of young Iranians held a series of candlelight vigils in Tehran.
Police rejected Ahmadinejad's request, citing construction and security concerns. Ahmadinejad told 60 Minutes he would not press the issue but expressed disbelief that the visit would offend Americans.
"Usually you go to these sites to pay your respects. And also to perhaps air your views about the root causes of such incidents," he told the network.
Columbia University president Lee Bollinger has resisted requests to cancel the event but promised to introduce the talk himself with a series of tough questions on topics including Ahmadinejad's views on the Holocaust, his call for the destruction of the state of Israel and his government's alleged support of terrorism.
Columbia canceled a planned visit by the Iranian president last year, citing security and logistical reasons. Ahmadinejad has called the Holocaust "a myth" and called for Israel to be "wiped off the map."
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