President Mohammad Khatami has denied that the killer quake which struck southeast Iran on December 26 was caused by a secret nuclear test, newspapers reported Wednesday."These allegations have spread, but they are completely unfounded," said the president, who on Monday and Tuesday visited the Bam region at the epicentre of the quake that he estimated had cost 40,000 lives.
"Our religious principles, our security and defence doctrine leave no room for nuclear arms," he said, quoted by the Iranian media.
Iran is building its first nuclear reactor but has repeatedly denied accusations from the United States and Israel that it has embarked on a covert nuclear arms programme.
All rights reserved. Copyright 2003 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.
Quick Links
SpaceWar
Search SpaceWar
Subscribe To SpaceWar Express