The comments, from Iran's chief delegate to the IAEA, were apparently meant to dispel concerns that Tehran was reducing contacts with the Vienna-based agency tasked with probing the Islamic Republic's nuclear activities.

Instead of cutting back on cooperation, Tehran wants to increase it, chief delegate Ali Ashgar Soltanieh told The Associated Press. To that end, a meeting between Iranian Vice President Gholam Reza Aghazadeh and IAEA head Mohamed ElBaradei on Thursday focused on "the promotion of cooperation with the IAEA," he said.

On Thursday, Aghazadeh appeared to signal that his country was no longer prepared to entertain further questions from the IAEA about allegations that Tehran conducted secret research and experiments into nuclear weapons.

Investigating such allegations "is outside the domain of the agency," he said after meeting with ElBaradei. Any further queries on the issue "will be dealt with in another way," he said, without elaborating.

Soltanieh, however, said that did not mean that his country was reducing its IAEA ties, saying, "we will continue our cooperation with the agency in accordance with our legal obligations."