UPDATE - Iran, Israel trade barbs over nuclear program

ADDS ISRAELI PREMIER'S REMARKS ON IRAN'S NUCLEAR PROGRAM

By Syed Zafar Mehdi and Mustafa Deveci

TEHRAN, Iran / JERUSALEM, Palestine (AA) - In a sharp retort to Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid's warning that Tel Aviv could act against Iran's nuclear program, Tehran said on Friday that it "reserves the right to respond."

Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh chided the Israeli top diplomat for his remarks made during his visit to Moscow to meet his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

Calling Israel an "outlaw regime" that possesses "illicit nukes", the Iranian spokesperson said the country that has refused to sign the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) "again threatens the NPT-member Iran."

"Iran reserves right to respond," he said in a statement posted on Twitter.

The remarks came a day after Lapid, during his first meeting with Lavrov in Moscow, emphasized the need to prevent Iran from getting nuclear weapons.

“Iran’s march toward a nuclear weapon is not only an Israeli problem, it’s a problem for the entire world,” the Israeli official asserted.

“A nuclear Iran will lead to a nuclear arms race in the Middle East,” Lapid warned.

“The world needs to stop Iran from getting nuclear capabilities, no matter the price. If the world doesn’t do it, Israel reserves the right to act," he said.

Pertinently, the two countries have traded barbs over nuclear issues for long. Iran has blamed Israel of targeting its key nuclear sites as well as top nuclear scientists.

- ‘Absurd’ allegations

In a separate statement, Khatibzadeh also denounced a statement issued by the Arab League in Cairo on Thursday, terming the allegations leveled against Iran "absurd."

The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain and Egypt had on Thursday called for a “rapid and comprehensive inspection” of all Iranian nuclear sites.

Khatibzadeh said Iran invites its neighbors for dialogue to "resolve misunderstandings through diplomatic channels."

Earlier this week, the UN atomic watchdog said Iran has "continued to increase" its stockpile of enriched uranium that it said could be used to make nuclear weapons.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in its quarterly report also alleged that its verification and monitoring activities have been “seriously undermined” since February by Iran’s refusal to let inspectors access the sites.

In response, Iran’s representative to IAEA Kazem Gharibabadi said "no one can tell" Iran to stop its nuclear activities as long as the US sanctions are in place, emphasizing that the measures are "in line with its non-proliferation commitments."

- Israel to do everything to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett asserted that the Tehran administration has lied about its nuclear program and urged the international community to take action against Iran.

Regarding the report by International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regarding Iran's nuclear program, he said "Israel views with utmost gravity the picture of the situation reflected in the report, which proves that Iran is continuing to lie to the world and advance a program to develop nuclear weapons while denying its international commitments."

"I call for an appropriate and rapid international reaction to the severe actions of Iran. The IAEA report warns that the time to act is now," Bennett said, noting that Tel Aviv will do everything to prevent Iran from possessing nuclear weapons.

He claimed that "The naive expectation that Iran will be prepared to change its path via negotiations has been proven to be baseless."

The report by the IAEA that was published Tuesday, indicated that Iran quadrupled its stockpile of 60% enriched uranium in the last five months.

Iran’s stock of uranium is estimated at 2,441.3 kilograms as of Aug. 30, down from 3241 kilograms on May 22, per the agency.

* Dilan Pamuk contributed to this report from Ankara