The Iranian parliament passed a bill on Sunday, which gives a green light to the resumption of uranium enrichment, as the European Union is trying hard to encourage the country to unlimitedly freeze nuclear activities.  

The bill was discussed in the Majlis (parliament) open session earlier on Sunday following the request of 50 delegates from the Presiding Board to focus on it as an emergency bill, and 238 members present at the session in the 290-seat parliament voted unanimously in favor of the bill, the official IRNA News Agency reported.

Parliament Speaker Gholam Ali Haddad Adel was quoted as saying that the Majlis would never yield to pressures.

"The Iranian nation insists on having its voice heard by the world and at the same time persists on safeguarding its national interests and also its right to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes," Adel said.

"The parliament is determined to support the efforts of young Iranian scientists who are working for the progress of the country and to safeguard national interests," added the speaker.  

The newly approved bill has long been advocated by some hard-line parliamentary members since Iran was frustrated in an expectation for a closure of its case at the June meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Iran suspended uranium enrichment after it held nuclear talks with the European trio of France, Germany and Britain last October in Tehran.

The Islamic Republic insisted that the suspension was a voluntary move to "build confidence" and it could be resumed whenever Tehran wanted.

The IAEA last month adopted a resolution, which urged Iran to suspend all of the activities related to uranium enrichment and fully cooperate with the inspectors to clear up all related issues before its next meeting due on Nov. 25.

The resolution has been criticized and rejected by Iran, which termed it as "illegal."

As a result, the hardliners in the parliament accelerated their pace to materialize their threat.

Washington has called on the United Nations Security Council to study Iran's nuclear issue for possible economic sanctions if Tehran doesn't fulfill the resolution.

Tehran has been denying the US accusation of developing nuclear weapons, asserting that it is politically motivated and Iran's nuclear research is fully peaceful.

(Xinhua News Agency November 1, 2004)