Iran says it will complain to the United Nations about what it calls a U.S. threat to attack Iran with nuclear weapons.
A foreign ministry statement in Tehran says the complaint is in response to U.S. President Barack Obama's announcement of a new nuclear strategy Tuesday. Mr. Obama vowed not to use nuclear weapons against countries that do not have them, but he made an exception for Iran and North Korea.
Washington accuses both nations of trying to develop nuclear weapons in defiance of global non-proliferation standards. Iran says its nuclear program is peaceful.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Mr. Obama Sunday of "implicitly" threatening a nuclear attack on Iran, a threat the ayatollah called "disgraceful." In a televised meeting with military officials, Khamenei said it is "very strange" that the head of a state is threatening a nuclear attack in the 21st century.
Earlier Sunday, Iran's parliament urged the government to file a U.N. complaint against Mr. Obama's statement, with 225 lawmakers in the 290-seat assembly backing the move.
Iran announced Friday that it plans to speed up its nuclear program by developing faster centrifuges for enriching uranium, a material that can be used to generate electricity or make nuclear weapons.
The U.S. State Department said the Iranian plan shows Tehran has "nefarious intentions." It said a peaceful nuclear program would have no need for faster centrifuges.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
