Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani says the Islamic Republic has always respected and will always respect international regulations in its nuclear energy program.
“Iran wants nothing beyond what is defined in the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) regarding the nuclear [rights] of countries,” the Iranian president said in a meeting with Indian Foreign Minister Salman Khorshid on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit on Friday.

Rouhani added that all of Iran’s nuclear activities are under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and are based on the regulations of the NPT.

The Iranian president expressed hope that the economic relations between the Islamic Republic and India would expand regardless of the illegal and unfair sanctions imposed on Iran.

The US, Israel and some of their allies falsely claim that Iran is pursuing non-civilian objectives in its nuclear energy program, with Washington and the European Union using the unfounded allegation as a pretext to impose illegal sanctions on Iran.

Tehran strongly rejects the groundless claim over its nuclear activities, maintaining that as a committed signatory to the NPT and a member of the IAEA, it has the right to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.

India’s foreign minister, for his part, said that India has always stressed Iran’s right to peaceful nuclear energy and asserted this position at international gatherings.

The Indian foreign minister also said that, “India is determined to take steps toward a long-term relation and full-scale cooperation with Iran” which is conducive to the interests of both countries.

The Iranian president, who arrived in Bishkek on Thursday at the head of a delegation to take part in the SCO summit, has already met with his Chinese, Kyrgyz, Kazakh and Afghan counterparts.

The SCO is an intergovernmental security organization founded in 2001 in Shanghai by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Iran, India, Mongolia, and Pakistan have an observer status at the organization.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif; Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh; and Rouhani’s Chief of Staff Mohammad Nahavandian are accompanying the president during his two-day trip to the Central Asian country.