Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi exchanged views over telephone Tuesday with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Iran's nuclear issue, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said in a brief statement.

 

The call came one day after U.S. National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley urged the world community to "turn up the pressure" on Iran despite a latest National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) indicated the Islamic republic appears less determined to develop nuclear weapons.

 

Washington accuses Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian nuclear program. Iran, which has always denied the U.S. charges, insists that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.

 

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Monday that the country's disputed nuclear issue was "closed" from Iran's perspective.

 

Iran does not feel threatened at all and any pressure on Iran concerning the issue is useless, he said, adding that "we are prepared for any conditions."

 

Reiterating the legitimacy of Iran's nuclear program, Ahmadinejad asserted the Iranian people would not abandon their right to produce new, clean and cheap energy.

 

(Xinhua News Agency December 4, 2007)