Despite diplomatic pressure by Japan, visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki maintained Monday that Tehran has the right to continue its nuclear program, a Foreign Ministry official said.

Mottaki met with Foreign Minister Taro Aso in Tokyo amid a flurry of diplomatic efforts to defuse the nuclear standoff.

According to the official, Aso urged Mottaki to abide by a Feb. 4 resolution by the International Atomic Energy Agency in which 27 of 35 member countries urged Iran to stop its uranium enrichment program.