Iranians march in N-row defiance
TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Tens of thousands of civil defense volunteers held a rally Wednesday in Iran's capital city in a show of force designed to deter possible U.S. or Israeli attacks on Iran's nuclear installations.
The rally was held a day before a crucial meeting in Vienna of the Board of Governors of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Thursday's meeting is to debate whether to refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council over its nuclear program, which the United States, Israel, and several European countries say is aimed at producing nuclear weapons.
There has been speculation in Iran that the United States or Israel may decide to destroy Iran's nuclear facilities in an effort to forestall Iran's alleged move towards building nuclear weapons.
In Tehran, men and women civil defense volunteers known as Bassij, or mobilization forces, lined up along several kilometers of a highway before marching past the their commanders.
They held up flags and placards denouncing the United States and Israel and pledging to defend the country.
Meanwhile, Iran's top nuclear negotiator was in Beijing, where he rejected U.S. demands that his country dismantle its nuclear program and sought support from China -- a permanent member of the Security Council with veto power.
"Definitely, Iran will never be prepared for dismantling," said Hossein Mousavian. "This is out of the question and is out of negotiation."
But, Mousavian said, Iran has suspended its nuclear activities, a move aimed at building confidence. The nuclear enrichment program, he said, will remain "forever peaceful and would never be diverted."
China has good reasons to support Iran. It faces Muslim unrest in its western frontier, and wants to cut off support to local dissidents from radical Islamic groups. China is also seeking stable sources of oil imports from countries such as Iran to meet surging energy needs stemming from rapid economic growth.
Iranian officials said China opposes sending the issue to the Security Council, and believes in Iran's commitment to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, or NPT. "We have promised Chinese officials that Iran would be committed to NPT safeguard and protocol," Mousavian said.
Still, officials in Israel expressed skepticism.
"The foreign minister of China believed after his visit to Tehran that the Iranians are serious about they are planning to move this development or those efforts only in order to develop, let's say, nuclear energy," said Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom. "We know the truth. I think most of the world knows the truth."
After the Tehran march, the commander of Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards, Yahya Rahim Safavi, told a news conference that Iran is ready to face the United States, although he said he did not think an attack was likely.
"The Americans are deep in the quagmire of Iraq. They are not in a position to attack Iran," Safavi told CNN.
Bassij volunteers are the civil defense arm of the Revolutionary Guards -- an elite armed force parallel to the army.
In a deal with the three European powers, Britain, France and Germany, Iran has agreed to suspend its nuclear enrichment activities -- which could be diverted to producing nuclear fuel for weapons -- in return for a range of incentives.
But while Iran says it will never give up its right to nuclear know-how, Europe and the United States insist that Iran suspend its uranium enrichment activities indefinitely.
CNN Correspondent Kasra Naji contributed to this report.
