“We will never negotiate on the Iranian nation’s obvious rights,” he said, adding Iran would not halt its uranium enrichment efforts. Ahmadinejad said Iran had prepared a proposal for breaking the deadlock on its nuclear program, and he asked diplomats to come to Tehran to pick it up.

The statement came as the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog announced that his agency was locked in a “stalemate” with Iran. The Obama administration has offered to open talks with Iran on nuclear and other issues, and International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei said he has urged Iran “to respond positively to the recent U.S. initiative.”