Iran to maintain nuke work

Tehran: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Sunday pledged to maintain the country's nuclear work, but said he wanted to remain within international rules.

"We are ready for talks but will not suspend our activities," he said in a speech broadcast on state television.

He added that it would be "humiliation" for Iran to abandon its nuclear programme and that UN-imposed sanctions would not harm the country.

Iran plans to install thousands of centrifuges and start "industrial-scale" enrichment. It already runs two cascades of 164 centrifuges at the Natanz underground plant.

Ahmadinejad made the speech as tens of thousands of Iranians took to the streets on Sunday to show support for the country's nuclear programme.

Tehran's Azadi square was filled with demonstrators shouting "Death to America" and carrying banners saying "Nuclear technology is our right".

Thousands of people also crowded the streets of Mashhad. Attendance in Tehran was expected to reach hundreds of thousands.