(No. 341 - November 9, 2011 - 8:20 p.m. ET) Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird today issued the following statement regarding the recent International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General's report relating to Iran:

"Canada is deeply disturbed by the actions of the current Iranian regime. The information presented in the report is only the latest of a series of grave concerns our government has with the regime.

"Iran's current leaders regularly ignore international obligations. They obfuscate Iran's nuclear activities and they block international attempts to verify the country's claims. They do so while continuing to promote religious intolerance, violate the rights of their citizens, and undermine regional and international security.

"The regime in Iran poses a significant threat to regional and global peace.

"Canada will continue to work with its like-minded allies to take the necessary action for Iran to abandon its nuclear program. We encourage others to join in this effort. It is not a question of if, but to what extent, we will act in response to this report.

"As this report is a confidential IAEA document, we will respect that confidence and not comment further."