Iran may face more sanctions over atomic work

Jerusalem, July 10: Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi warned Iran today to curb its atomic programme or possibly face tougher international sanctions.

Speaking during a visit to Israel, Prodi said that as one of Iran's top trading partners, Italy was suffering economically from sanctions already in place but added that it would be Tehran's fault if the penalties were now tightened.

''Iran's refusal to accept Security Council decisions brings greater sanctions closer and takes us further down a path no one wants,'' Prodi told a joint news conference with his Israeli counterpart, Ehud Olmert.

''If Iran wants to play a role as a regional power it must pursue the stabilisation of the region. A path towards nuclear (weapons) is the exact opposite of that.'' Prodi said that Italy's trade with Iran had slumped, adding that the existing sanctions were a burden on his country but that they had been implemented ''diligently''.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said Israel should be ''wiped off the map'' and last month forecast the destruction of the Jewish state. He said the Lebanese and Palestinians had pressed a ''countdown button'' to bring an end to Israel.

Olmert said a country with such an attitude must never be allowed to develop nuclear arms.

The Italian leader took a guided tour of Israel's Holocaust museum where he attended a ceremony dedicated to the victims of the Nazi concentration camps and signed a memorial book.

Prodi's meeting with Olmert also touched on other regional security issues, including Lebanon, where Italy leads a UN peacekeeping force. He also spoke about the conflict in the Palestinian territories.

Prodi reiterated the European Union's policy of support for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and called on Hamas to make an important gesture by releasing an Israeli soldier it seized a year ago.

''From this podium I make a strong call to the leadership of Hamas to release without delay (Gilad) Shalit,'' he said.

Reuters

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