By Parisa Hafezi
TEHRAN (Reuters) - The Iranian president said on WednesdayIran's determination to continue its disputed nuclear programmehad brought major powers "to their knees".
In another defiant speech ahead of an International AtomicEnergy Agency report on Iran due on Friday, Mahmoud Ahmadinejadsaid Iran would ignore calls by major powers to halt sensitivenuclear work that has led to two rounds of U.N. sanctions.
"The Iranian nation will not allow any power to trampleeven on its smallest (national) right," he said in a televisedaddress to a rally in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas.
As well as worrying the West, Ahmadinejad's uncompromisingspeeches have stoked concerns among moderate politicians inIran ahead of a March parliamentary election. Critics say he ispushing Iran into international isolation.
Former nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani, who is running fora parliament seat, said in remarks published on Wednesday hehad quit the post of negotiator over "differences on managementmechanism" with Ahmadinejad. He did not elaborate.
The U.N. nuclear watchdog report was expected to be out onFriday. IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei has cited "good progress"in resolving outstanding issues although diplomats said theinquiry looked unlikely to be completed by Friday.
U.N. Security Council members will scrutinise the detailsin his report before finalising a draft for a third and broaderround of sanctions, which is now being considered.
"The Iranian nation's will to continue nuclear work has wonover the will of big powers ... (and) brought them to theirknees," said Ahmadinejad, to chants from the crowd of "Death toAmerica" and "Nuclear energy is our obvious right".
ANSWERING QUESTIONS
Under Iran's system of clerical rule, the final word innuclear policy lies with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.He has also said Iran will not stop efforts to develop nuclearenergy. Western powers suspect Iran is really after atom bombs.
Tehran insists its work is entirely peaceful and only aimedat mastering technology to be used to generate electricity.
"Today the (IAEA), which is legally in charge of this case,has prepared a report and announced that Iran's activities arelegal and there is no diversion," Ahmadinejad said.
"Big powers should respect the agency and its findings."
The IAEA, seeking answers to longstanding questions aboutIran's programme, has clarified a series of issues under atransparency deal reached with Larijani last August.
Larijani told the Financial Times that Iran had respondedto the IAEA to show the country's nuclear plans were peaceful."We have finished answering all their ... questions," he said.
But a senior diplomat close to the IAEA said the last andtoughest issue remained under discussion -- alleged links undermilitary supervision between uranium processing, highexplosives tests and design work on missile warheads.
Diplomats accredited to the IAEA said they did not expectthis file, also known as "weaponisation" of nuclear materials,to be resolved by the time of the IAEA report, despite aJanuary IAEA-Iran deal to wrap up the inquiry by mid-February.
The IAEA received U.S. intelligence on "weaponisation" in2005. Last month, Washington, after long hesitation for fear ofexposing sources, authorised the IAEA to share some of the datawith Iran in hopes of extracting an Iranian "confession",Vienna diplomats said. Tehran has long denied such accusations.
Washington is leading efforts to broaden sanctions overIran's refusal to stop enriching uranium, a process with bothcivilian and military applications.
Russia and China, trade partners with Iran, watered downthe latest sanctions draft after a U.S. intelligence reportsaying Iran stopped an active, covert nuclear bomb programme in2003.
(additional reporting by Mark Heinrich in Vienna)
(Writing by Edmund Blair, editing by Ralph Boulton)
