Iran nuke envoy blames US for cyberattack

Iran’s top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili blamed the US for a cyberattack on what he insisted is a nuclear energy - not weapons - program, in an interview broadcast today, AFP reports.

Days ahead of a high-profile talks over the Islamic republic's nuclear program later this week, Saeed Jalili told NBC News an Iranian investigation found the US was involved in a cyberattack that apparently shut down a fifth of Iran's nuclear centrifuges in November.

"I have witnessed some documents that show... their satisfaction in that" the US participated in the cyberattack - using the Stuxnet computer worm - that also helped delay Iran's ability to make its first nuclear weapons.

But he said the effort did not wreak as much damage as some media have reported.

"Those who have done that could see now that they were not successful in that and we are following our success," Mr Jalili said, warning the US was "also weak and vulnerable" to cyberattacks.

His comments came after The New York Times reported over the weekend that US and Israeli intelligence services collaborated to develop the destructive computer worm in a bid to sabotage Iran's efforts to make a nuclear bomb.

Tehran has also blamed its enemies for the killing of three top nuclear scientists last year, and today, it vowed to sue its archfoe Israel for the murder of one of them - Masoud Ali Mohammadi.

Iran accuses the intelligence services of Israel, the US and Britain of being behind bomb attacks against the other two nuclear scientists on November 26.

"We believe that there is a meaningful relation between the UN Security Council resolution (sanctioning Iran over its nuclear program) and these kind of activities," Mr Jalili said of the attacks.

"It is a big question for the international community, and a big kind of question in that the name of the scientists of a country mentioned in the United Nations council resolution and then following that the terrorists assassinated them."

But the senior negotiator expressed optimism that despite the acrimony, progress could be made at the second round of talks between Tehran and six world powers due to get underway on Saturday in Istanbul.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is for talk around and on common points... which are accepted by both sides," he said. "Therefore we are ready to talk for whatever is important from folks."