Nuclear programme: Iran rejects IAEA resolution

Iran has rejected a UN atomic watchdog agency resolution that would refer Iran to the UN Security Council over its disputed nuclear programme.

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said the resolution, approved by vote, removed doubts that Britain, France and Germany, the key three European countries negotiating with Iran, have violated previous agreements with Iran.

He called the resolution illegal and illogical. "The three European countries implemented a planned scenario already determined by the United States," Mottaki said on state-run television.

The 35-nation board of the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) approved the resolution on Saturday that could lead to Iran's referral to the UN Security Council for violating a nuclear arms control treaty, unless Tehran eases suspicions about its nuclear activities. The resolution was adopted by a vote of 22 to 1, with 12 abstentions, Aljazeera reports.