Iran's Supreme Leader Says Islamic Republic Not Seeking Nuclear Weapons

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has offered new assurances that Iran is not seeking to develop nuclear weapons.

His statement on February 22 came after officials of the United Nations nuclear watchdog agency expressed disappointment about the results of this week's visit to the Islamic republic by an expert team.

In his official statement, Khamenei said Iran is not trying to get nuclear weapons -- but he also said Iran wants “to break the supremacy" of the nuclear-armed world powers.

Khamenei urged Iranian scientists to continue what he called "important and substantial" nuclear work.

In a statement, UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Yukiya Amano said Tehran had refused to grant the IAEA team access to a military complex at Parchin to check for evidence of possible nuclear arms work.