By Country / Iran
Iran Says EU Rights Criticism 'Interference'
May 28, 2007
Mohammad Ali Hosseini (file photo) (Fars)
Hosseini said today that his country considers a statement from the
European Union's Presidency to be "interfering in its internal affairs."
On May 25, the EU Presidency released a statement expressing concerns that included the arrests of activists and intimidation of academics and journalists.
Hosseini said the EU should concentrate on "important cases" such as rights violations on its own territory.
Separately, a top Russian diplomat says Russia is "greatly disappointed" by Iran's failure to fulfill international demands to freeze its uranium enrichment. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Kislyak was quoted as saying Russia expected Tehran to "revise its position."
He was commenting on a report by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) last week that said Iran was making substantial advances in uranium enrichment, a project which has fueled Western suspicions that Tehran may be trying to create a nuclear bomb.
(Reuters, AP)