Iranian: Nuclear Issue Is ‘Closed

UNITED NATIONS — President Ahmadinejad of Iran announced today that "the nuclear issue of Iran is now closed," and indicated that Tehran will disregard U.N. Security Council resolutions imposed by "arrogant powers" and demanding suspension of its uranium enrichment.

Instead, he said, Iran has decided to pursue the monitoring of its nuclear program "through its appropriate legal path," the International Atomic Energy Agency which is the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog.

The American delegation was absent during the speech except for a note taker.

The Iranian leader spoke hours after President Sarkozy of France warned the assembly that allowing Iran to arm itself with nuclear weapons would be an "unacceptable risk to stability in the region and in the world."

Earlier, Chancellor Merkel of Germany threatened tougher sanctions against Iran if the country remains intractable on the dispute over its nuclear program.