Tehran warns of fuel disruptions

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has warned that fuel shipments from the Gulf region could be disrupted if the US makes a "wrong move." In a speech on state TV, Ayatollah Khamenei also said accusations that Iran intended to make a nuclear bomb amounted to a "sheer lie." He insisted Iran would not give up its right to produce nuclear fuel. Tehran has agreed to study proposals drawn up by six world powers to defuse the tensions over Iran's nuclear program. "We do not need a nuclear bomb. We do not have any objectives or aspirations for which we will need to use a nuclear bomb. We consider using nuclear weapons to be against Islamic rules," he said. The ayatollah launched a scathing attack on the US, which he said was the most hated country in the world. "How do you talk about human rights and opposition to terrorism when your government has prisons like Guantánamo and Abu Ghraib?" he asked. He said the US was trying to influence world public opinion with their "frenzied propaganda" but questioned whether there was indeed an international consensus against Iran's nuclear program. Islamic countries, Non-Aligned Movement nations and other independent countries all backed Tehran, the Iranian leader said. He warned the US action on Iran could disrupt energy supplies. "If you make a wrong move regarding Iran, definitely the energy flow in this region will be seriously endangered," he said. He did not specify how the supplies would be disrupted. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice brushed off the warning. "I think we shouldn't place too much emphasis on a threat of this kind," she told Fox News. "I think something like 80 percent of Iran's budget comes from oil revenue, and so obviously it would be a very serious problem for Iran if oil were disrupted on the market." Iran has the world's second biggest proven oil reserves after Saudi Arabia and the second biggest gas reserves after Russia.