TEHRAN, Oct. 25 (UPI) -- In its latest reaction Sunday to a European offer of trade incentives and alternative nuclear technology for a halt to uranium enrichment, Iran was by no means far from previous expectations when a country's spokesman described the proposal as "preliminary" and "unbalanced," with a call on Europeans to "first" assure Tehran of fulfilling what they promise.
The Islamic republic has already chided the Europeans for failing to honor their "political and moral commitment" they took during a meeting in Tehran last year.
"The Europeans should give us the assurance that if we reached an agreement, they could implement it," Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi said at a weekly news briefing in Tehran, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency.
Iran had expected the Europeans to get the IAEA to wrap up its investigation of the Iranian nuclear program by last June.
The two sides met in Vienna Thursday for their first round of talks amid reports that the trio of France, Britain and Germany would seek to provide Iran with alternative nuclear technology -- such as a light-water reactor which would produce less fissionable material than that working with heavy water -- if Tehran suspended all its uranium enrichment activities.
Asefi said the three European heavyweights' proposal was "preliminary" and "not final," stressing that it must be juxtaposed with "more positive tones, and its negative points must be eliminated or reduced."
"The legitimate rights of the Islamic republic of Iran must be definitely respected and their legitimacy recognized," he said. "The Europeans must assure us about what they say and give us assurance that they remain committed to what they say and fulfill their promises."
Asefi said the next round of talks between the two sides will be held on Wednesday, in which Iran will present its own proposals, while continuing to consider the Europeans' proposals.
"We must reach a median solution which removes the Europeans' concerns -- if there is any -- and recognizes our rights in the framework of the NPT (nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty)," he said, dismissing, however, the demand that Tehran suspend all activities related to uranium enrichment for good.
"The question is not to permanently suspend uranium enrichment, and the Europeans' proposal itself points to unlimited suspension until an agreement is reached," Asefi said, stressing that the EU has never demanded a "permanent" and "unlimited" suspension of uranium enrichment from Iran.
"This is not acceptable by the Islamic republic since Iran's suspension of enrichment has been voluntary and temporary to promote confidence building," he added.
In a decision to prove its good faith, Tehran has voluntarily suspended uranium enrichment and the manufacture of centrifuge components. Moreover, the clerical regime has signed an additional protocol to the NPT, allowing snap inspections of its nuclear facilities.
Iran says its nuclear program is aimed at power generation, rejecting U.S. accusations that the program is a cover to build an atomic bomb. It also insists that it wants to master nuclear fuel cycle, which is permitted under the NPT and to which the Islamic republic is a signatory.
Certain circles inside Iran, including several parliamentarians, have urged the country to resume uranium enrichment and quit the NPT as well as the additional protocol, consequently shutting the door to regular and snap inspections of the country's nuclear facilities.
The conservative-dominated Parliament refused in September to ratify the additional protocol to the NPT for unfettered inspection of Iran's nuclear facilities after the International Atomic Energy Agency passed a tough resolution, demanding Iran freeze all activities related to uranium enrichment. The protocol, however, has been practically in force since last year's agreement with the Europeans.
"The continued defiance of principles by the IAEA's Board of Directors leaves no room for us to ratify the additional protocol, and will lead us to question what is the point for the nation to leave its doors open to IAEA inspectors," a statement, read out in Parliament, said.
Britain, France and Germany drafted the resolution, setting a Nov. 25 deadline for a full review of Iran's nuclear program and calling on Tehran to "immediately" suspend all activities connected to the fuel cycle work.
On Sunday, an MP announced that her peers in Parliament were planning their own "trigger mechanism," setting a two-week deadline for the Europeans to settle Iran's nuclear case or have the country quit the IAEA.
"So far, 100 deputies have endorsed this plan, which will be presented today," Raf'at Bayat said.
The measure is apparently an answer to U.S. proposal for the world nuclear watchdog to include the "trigger" clause in its resolutions for an automatic referral of Iran to the U.N. Security Council should the country fail to bring its nuclear program to light.
The MP came down heavily on several officials of the country, including Iran's top nuclear negotiator, Hassan Rowhani, for what she described as their "reactionary" response to the Europeans.
"In this issue, the Europeans have proceeded on every front, while we have been on the retreat and instead of challenging the imperialists, they have challenged us," she said.
Bayat urged the Parliament to "control every move of the agency's (inspectors)" and demanded that all arrival and departure of IAEA inspectors take place with Parliament's approval.
Reacting to the MP's statements, however, Asefi was non-committal, saying "the MPs are free in their views and devising laws".
"Naturally, when a law passes all the proceedings and receives the approval of the related authorities, the Iranian government is obliged to implement it," he said.
A spokesman for the Iranian nuclear negotiating team, Hussein Mousavian, also told state television on Saturday that his country would continue its program of uranium enrichment in order to master nuclear fuel technology.
"We are not going to count on the Europeans for fuel, and we will continue on our path to be independent in this matter," he said.
Earlier, a senior lawmaker had termed the European conditions as "unacceptable" and "an excessive demand that is contrary to the NPT."
"The Islamic Republic of Iran will not accept a (Western) monopoly on nuclear technology and will pursue its activities with determination," Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, told the conservative newspaper Resalat.
The United States, on the other hand, had frowned on the incentives offered by the Europe's three key states but had made no move to stop the offer from being made, with Secretary of State Colin Powell holding out little hope that Tehran would respond positively. Powell told reporters aboard his plane en route to Japan on Saturday that Washington could get support from the IAEA to refer Iran to the Security Council in the event Tehran failed to comply with its obligations to the European nations.
Some analysts say -- though it is hard to see how a compromise can be reached -- the latest comments by some Iranian officials do, in no way, reflect Iran's formal response to the proposal. They say it could merely be a question of finding the right wording in order for any envisaged deal to seem sensible to the public.
Iranian leaders, including President Mohammad Khatami, have often equaled the country's nuclear achievements with the national pride, an utterance that has made any solution to the standoff much harder.
Recent polls, according to officials, show that most Iranians favor the continuation of the controversial program.
With the U.S. presidential elections approaching, some observers are of the opinion that no official response should be expected from Iran before Nov. 3.
