国际英语新闻：Iranian president dismisses Western sanctions as ineffective

ISTANBUL, Dec. 23 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad dismissed recent Western-imposed sanctions as ineffective here on Thursday.

The recent round of sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council against Iran's controversial nuclear issue has "no affect on our decision-making processes," Ahmadinejad said after he attended the 11th summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) held here.

"We are self-reliant and our economic development does not rely on Europe or the U.S.. In our economic planning, we pay no attention to those resolutions and sanctions," he said.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad waves as he arrives at the 11th Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) Summit in Istanbul December 23, 2010.

The Iranian president said the upcoming meeting to be held in Istanbul between Iran and the five UN Security Council permanent members plus Germany (G5+1) regarding Iranian nuclear ambitions will be "fruitful."