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International News Title: Iran mocks EU nuclear offer The Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has rejected European plans to build his country a nuclear reactor in return for it giving up its uranium enrichment programme. In a hardline speech in the city of Arak, where Iran's only existing nuclear reactor is being constructed, he mocked the plans being developed by the UK, France and Germany. "They say they want to offer us incentives," he said. "We tell them: keep the incentives as a gift for yourself. We have no hope of anything good from you. "Do you think you are dealing with a four-year-old child to whom you can give some walnuts and chocolates and get gold from him?" European diplomats yesterday raised the possibility of building a light water nuclear reactor for Iran, a proposal intended to allow the country to continue with its nuclear programme, while reducing the potential for weapons development. Iran claims its nuclear programme, which boasts the heavy water reactor in Arak and a uranium enrichment facility in Isfahan, is only intended for peaceful purposes. But both facilities can be used to develop material for nuclear bombs. Heavy water reactors produce large amounts of plutonium as a by-product, and uranium enrichment plants can be used to enrich the radioactive material beyond the 3.5% level used in power generation to the levels of 20% or more that are needed to detonate atomic bombs. The International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed last week that Iran had succeeded in enriching uranium up to a level of 5%. Mr Ahmadinejad's televised speech was made in front of a roaring crowd of supporters, who chanted: "We love you Ahmadinejad." His foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi lampooned the European offer of incentives, making a joking reply offer to the EU countries. "We are prepared to offer economic incentives to Europe in return for recognising our right (to enrich uranium)," state radio quoted him as saying. The stance is a change from Mr Ahmadinejad's apparently conciliatory position last week, when he broke 26 years of official silence to send a letter to the US president, George Bush. The move was widely interpreted as an attempt to open a dialogue, although the hectoring tone of the letter left Washington dismissing the move as an attempt to distract attention from Iran's nuclear weapons development. Iranian media reported yesterday that Mr Ahmadinejad was drafting a second letter to Mr Bush. Wrangling over how to tackle Iran has put off talks between the US, Russia, China and the EU three, which were due to be held in London on Friday. Russia and China favour the most conciliatory stance and Tehran has received favourably Russian proposals to provide it with enriched uranium for its power plants. Both nations oppose taking UN action against Tehran's flouting of a security council resolution ordering it to halt its uranium enrichment plant. The EU three support imposing a UN resolution that could lead to sanctions or even military action, although only the US and Israel are thought to favour a pre-emptive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities.
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