In a sign of defiance against demands that it cease its current nuclear activity, Iran on Monday reinstated the head of its nuclear program, Gholamreza Aghazadeh, who had run the program since 1997.
The news came in an announcement on Iran's state radio by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, just as French President Jacques Chirac warned on Monday that Iran's stance could force the matter before the UN Security Council, urging Iran to cooperate, according to the AP.
Aghazadeh had previously referred to European offers for economic incentives to Iran in return for the cessation of its renewed uranium conversion activities a "joke."
The US and members of the EU fear that Iran is using its nuclear program for military purposes; Iran continues to maintain that all its nuclear activities are solely for civilian energy needs.
Also on Monday, an exhibition opened in Tehran on Iran's nuclear technology achievements and its applications in medicine, industry and agriculture, according to IRNA. The aim of the exhibition, according to Iranian sources, is to better educate people with Iran's nuclear technology activities.
