Iran's hard-line president challenged the UN on Tuesday -- two days before the deadline for a Security Council ultimatum demanding Tehran roll back its nuclear program -- and proposed a televised debate with US President George W. Bush.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also said no one can prevent his country from pursuing what he called a peaceful nuclear program -- not even UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
"Mr. Annan, too, has to move within the framework of international regulations. No one has a special right or advantage," the Iranian president said during a wide-ranging news conference that lasted two hours.
Annan is expected in Iran on Saturday, two days after the council's deadline for Tehran to suspend uranium enrichment, a process that can produce either fuel for a reactor or material for weapons. Iran has refused any immediate suspension, calling the deadline illegal. Instead, Iran offered a counterproposal earlier this week that the US and some European nations said fell short.
Ahmadinejad's latest show of defiance seemed to solidify the country's determination to snub the Security Council, coming after a string of public displays of military and political determination in recent days.
The White House immediately rejected his proposal of a TV debate with Bush.
In his criticism of the Security Council, Ahmadinejad singled out two of its permanent members -- the US and Britain -- for what he called their failure to listen to the needs of other countries.
"The US and Britain are the source of many tensions," the Iranian president said.
At the White House, spokeswoman Dana Perino said the debate idea was "just a diversion from the legitimate concerns that the international community, not just the US, has about Iran's behavior, from support for terrorism to pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability."
The Bush administration earlier this week reaffirmed its intention to pursue UN sanctions against Iran if it defies the approaching deadline.
RSS