Ali Akbar Salehi listens to a question posed by media in his office in Tehran, Tuesday. (Vahid Salemi/Canadian Press)

Iran will not discuss its second nuclear enrichment site when it meets with international diplomats in Geneva this week, according to officials.

Thursday's meeting of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, Germany and Iran is aimed at halting suspected nuclear activity.

The leaders of the United States, France and Britain announced last week they have disclosed intelligence information to the International Atomic Energy Agency that confirms an underground nuclear facility in Iran and have demanded an in-depth investigation.

"We are not going to discuss anything related to our nuclear rights, but we can discuss about disarmament, we can discuss about non-proliferation and other general issues," said Ali Akbar Salehi, vice-president of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran.

Site next to military base

Iran is only willing to have a general discussion about nuclear technology and will also not commit to abandoning its nuclear activities at the meeting, Salehi said.

The facility, located in a mountainside near Qum, is still 18 months from completion and will only process uranium for energy purposes, according to Iranian officials.

Salehi said that the location of the newly revealed site was selected to ensure the continuity of the country's nuclear activities in the event of an attack. The facility is next to a military base with an air defence system.

The West fears the program may be geared toward producing weapons and has demanded the doors be open to the IAEA.

Uranium processing is a key aspect of any nuclear power program as the mineral needs to be enriched to fuel a nuclear reactor producing electricity — or to be turned into bomb-making material.

"We are working out a timetable for the inspection and we will soon be writing a letter to the [agency] about the location of the facility and others," Salehi said.

Don't repeat 'past mistakes', Iran warns

Iran's parliament lashed out at the criticism about the nuclear site on Tuesday.

"If the five-plus-one repeats the past mistakes, the parliament will put other decisions on agenda," legislators said in a statement issued on Tuesday.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad 's press adviser said Tuesday that Iran wants the talks to "open a new window of understanding and co-operation based on justice and peace for both sides."

But success is only possible if the West demonstrates its "honesty and commitment to change," said Ali Akbar Javanfekr.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said a broad dialogue about nuclear activity will still be possible at Thursday's meeting.

"We should pool our resources together and do everything possible in the interests of a diplomatic, political solution to the Iranian nuclear problem," Ryabkov said.

Nuclear abolition possible: UN

The global community must work together to resume talks aimed at reducing nuclear arsenals, Mohamed ElBaradei, chief of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told a conference in New Delhi on Tuesday.

The nine countries now armed with nuclear weapons "is nine too many," said ElBaradei.

Momentum is beginning to build for the "complete abolition" of nuclear arsenals, he said, and the groundwork is being laid for global security not dependent on the weapons.

"After a couple of … wasted decades, nuclear disarmament has moved back to the top of the international agenda," he said.

But a nuclear weapon-free world can only become a reality if countries adopt a system based on inclusion and equity, he said.

With files from The Associated Press