Iranian government spokesman Gholam Hossein Elham said on Saturday that the Islamic Republic has made no change in its nuclear stance and will hold on to its right to peaceful use of nuclear.

"Iran's stance has not changed. The Iranian nation is determined to continue its nuclear path, which has been drawn up by the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. Iranians will not give up their rights," Elham told reporters at his weekly press conference in Tehran.

In response to a question on recent remarks by some Iranian officials on the nuclear case, Elham said that individuals are free in Iran to express their views but their personal statements do not represent the opinion of the government and the system.

"The government is responsible for the country's affairs and makes decisions," he said, adding that "on the nuclear issue, there is a national consensus. The Iranian people have a resolve to hold on to their inalienable rights."

Elham announced that Secretary of Supreme National Security Council, Saeed Jalili, is in charge of negotiations with European Union (EU) foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who delivered an incentives package on behalf of six major countries to Tehran during a visit there early June.

Iran's Ambassador in Brussels Ali-Asghar Khaji on Friday handed over to Russia, China, France, Britain, the United States, and Germany his country's response to their latest bid to end the five-year standoff over Iran's disputable nuclear program.

Iran's own package of proposals to resolve the major international challenge was offered to Western countries in May.

(Xinhua News Agency July 6, 2008)