Pro-nuclear students demonstrate at embassies

Hundreds of Iranian students demonstrated today at the British, French and Germany embassies, protesting the European call for Iran to permanently freze uranium enrichment.

About 500 students chanted “stopping of uranium conversion is treason” and “uranium enrichment has to begin in Natanz” as they marched from one embassy to the next in central Tehran. Natanz is the site of the country’s facility for enriching uranium.

Britain, Germany and France, which have negotiated with Iran on behalf of the 25-member European Union, have unsuccessfully tried to persuade Iran to permanently freeze its uranium enrichment programme.

Anti-riot police blocked the students from entering the embassy grounds, but some demonstrators burned US and Israeli flags.

The US accuses Iran of using its civilian nuclear program as a cover to secretly develop nuclear weapons. Tehran insists the program is only for generating electricity.

The students accused the so-called EU-3 – Britain, France and Germany – of turning into “puppets in the hands of America” by pressuring Iran.

Iran rejected a package of European aide proposals earlier this month because, Tehran said, it failed to recognise Iran’s right to enrich uranium. Iran had said it was prepared to offer guarantees that its nuclear programme won’t be diverted for making weapons but won’t give up its right to enrich uranium under the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty.

Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Friday Iran wants to enrich its own uranium extracted from its mine to produce fuel for its nuclear reactors and doesn’t want to be depend on foreign countries for nuclear fuel.

Iran resumed uranium reprocessing activities at its uranium conversion facility in Isfahan after rejecting the European offer.

Tehran says it wants negotiations with Europe on starting enrichment. The students called for the government to start the programme unilaterally if negotiations fail.