"Our policy is to work within the NPT and the Agency," he said, referring to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

"But if we see that they don't want to accept our rights we will reconsider, and nothing important will happen," the hardline president told a news conference.

"It is time for the agency to restore its reputation. They haven't done anything but cause nuisance," he said of the IAEA, the UN nuclear watchdog.