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Iran remains defiant on nuclear programTehran promises to respond to Western plan by August 22
Iran's Ali Larijan warns against a "path of confrontation." RELATEDYOUR E-MAIL ALERTSTEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Iran has promised to formally respond next month to a Western package of incentives aimed at persuading it to suspend its uranium enrichment program. But Tehran's chief nuclear negotiator said Thursday that his nation would defy calls for it to halt the production of nuclear fuel. "The package of incentives requires a logical time to study it ... August 22 has been set for declaring (our) views," Ali Larijani, the head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said a statement read out on state television. Larijani said Iran was still reviewing nuclear proposals backed by six nations -- five permanent U.N. Security Council members -- the United States, China, France, Russia and Britain, plus Germany -- and wanted talks to solve the dispute. But he also threatened that Iran would reconsider its nuclear policies if any sanctions were imposed. "In case the path of confrontation is chosen instead of the path of dialogue ... and Iran's definite rights are threatened, then there will be no option for Iran but to reconsider its nuclear policies." Larijani added that Iran plans to have a significant nuclear power grid over the next 20 years, and it "needs to produce nuclear fuel inside the country for those reactors." His comments came on the same day that German Chancellor Angela Merkel received a letter from Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Merkel's office would only confirm receipt of the letter and that its was being analyzed. 'Fresh start'The incentives, proposed on June 5, include an offer to improve Iran's access to the international economy through participation in groups such as the World Trade Organization, and to modernize its telecommunications industry. The incentives also mention the possibility of lifting restrictions on U.S. and European manufacturers wanting to export civil aircraft to Iran. Under a proposed long-term agreement accompanying the incentives, the six nations propose a "fresh start in negotiations." The agreement would be filed with the International Atomic Energy Agency and endorsed in a Security Council resolution. As a framework for the talks, the countries would support a civil nuclear energy program in Iran and the construction of new light water power reactors, which use ordinary water as a coolant. However, the assurances would come only if Iran agrees to participate in an international facility in Russia to provide enrichment services for a reliable supply of fuel to Iran's nuclear reactors. While Iran argues it has a right to nuclear technology under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty to generate power, there is increasing global concern that Tehran wants to enrich uranium to weapons-grade levels for use in the fissile core of nuclear warheads. Copyright 2006 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report. 
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