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In a defiant address in front of the UN Security Council this afternoon, Iranian Ambassador Mohammad Khazaee said that the sanctions adopted earlier in the day would not prevent Tehran from further developing its nuclear program.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran is determined to exercise its inalienable right to nuclear technology for peaceful purposes and to build on its own scientific advances in developing various peaceful aspects of this technology."said Khazaee.

He argued that the resolution was politically motivated and said his government had consistently demonstrated its opposition to the development and use of weapons of mass destruction, namely through Iran's cooperation with the IAEA, participation in the NPT ( Non-Proliferation Treaty) and a recent fuel swap deal with Brazil and Turkey.

In his address, Khazaee took Washington and London head on, alluding to the UK's colonial past in the Middle East, the US's sale of chemical weapons to Saddam Hussein in the 1980's and the role of both countries in the 2003 Iraq war to discredit their claims about Iran's nuclear aspirations and question their motives.

"I will not dwell on the abuse of this body and the biggest lies of the recent history articulated by still the same powers here when they attempted to justify their invasion of Iraq." said Khazaee, who also accused Permanent Members of The Security Council of "double standards" when it came to Israel's nuclear arsenal. "What is at stake today is the credibility of the Security Council, that has turned into a tool in the toolbox of a few countries who do not hesitate to abuse it when and where their interests require"

Asked about Khazaee's comments, US Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice said she rejected Khazaee's notion of double standards, branding his comments as offensive and inaccurate, and clearly meant to distract from the fact Tehran was in violation of its nuclear obligation.

In the past few weeks, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad promised on several occasions that any new sanctions on Iran would mean the end of negotiations over its nuclear program, but Rice said the resolution did not mean the end of talks.

"This is a dual track policy, engagement and diplomacy remain very much on table.The purpose of this resolution was not to punish the people of iran, it was to change the calculation of the leadership in Iran, constrain their ability to pursue their nuclear and proliferation activities and persuade them of the wisdom of coming to the negotiating table in earnest"