Ahmadinejad still defiant against UN

Iran demands punishment for countries that voted for sanctions.

Ahmadinejad UN 311 (photo credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Ahmadinejad UN 311
(photo credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS)
TEHERAN — Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that Teheran supports a dialogue with the outside world but that world powers must first be punished for the latest round of UN sanctions.
Ahmadinejad stated that these are conditions for Iran to sit and talk with "those behind" the new punitive UN measures.
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His remarks come after EU's foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, this week invited Iran's top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili to discuss the nuclear issue.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast spoke out against a European initiative to impose tougher sanctions on the Islamic republic on earlier in the week on Tuesday.
"Sanctions will not stop Iran's nuclear work. Sanctions will make us more decisive to become self-sufficient," said Mehmanparast.