Sunday, March 13 2005 09:35 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Caracas: Iran is willing to cooperate to show the world it is not trying to make nuclear weapons, Iran's President said as his country faced increasing pressure from the United States and Europe over its nuclear program.

The comments by Iranian President Mohammad Khatami came one day after the US Government softened its stance on Iran's nuclear program and agreed to support a European plan offering economic incentives to Tehran to give up any weapons ambitions.

"We are ready to cooperate with the world to give more certainty that Iran is not moving toward the creation of nuclear arms," Khatami said through an interpreter yesterday (Mar 12, 2005).

The US Government insists Iran's uranium enrichment program is aimed at developing a bomb, but Iranian officials have repeatedly denied this.

Iran insists its nuclear program is purely for peaceful energy use and argues it is entitled to work on civilian uses of uranium enrichment under the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty.

But Iran suspended enrichment-related activities last year to create confidence during negotiations over its program and avoid the UN Security Council considering sanctions. But it says maintaining the voluntary freeze depends on progress in talks with Britain, Germany and France, which are negotiating on behalf of the European Union.

Khatami said the Iranians' decision to freeze uranium enrichment is "something moral that we are doing."

"We have accepted postponing the activities of uranium enrichment in a voluntary way and only temporarily, even though we have no obligation," he said.