WORLD / Middle East
EU, Iran seek common ground on nukes
(AP)
Updated: 2007-03-27 08:37
VIENNA, Austria - A top European envoy on Monday renewed an offer from
six world powers to talk with Tehran over its nuclear ambitions, and a
senior Iranian negotiator agreed to stay in contact in an effort to find
common ground.
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European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana's telephone
conversation with Ali Larijani, Tehran's top nuclear negotiator, was the
first exchange between the representatives of Iran and the international
community since the UN Security Council toughened its anti-Iran sanctions
because of the Islamic republic's refusal to freeze uranium enrichment.
Solana spokeswoman Cristina Gallach emphasized it was not a negotiating
session but more a message to the Iranian side that the international
community was interested in "renewing ... talks and solving in a
negotiated matter" differences separating the sides.
Although enriched uranium can serve as the fissile core of nuclear
weapons, Iran insists it wants the technology only to generate power.
Still, years of growing international mistrust over Tehran's goals led to
the first set of UN sanctions in December and to agreement Saturday to
impose additional Security Council penalties.
Iran remained defiant. On Sunday, it announced it was partially
suspending cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency - the
UN nuclear watchdog - by revoking a pledge to inform it of any plans to
build new nuclear facilities. That could theoretically make it easier for
Tehran to construct a secret uranium enrichment plant that would be safe
from any Israeli or US attack.
Gallach said no new ground was covered in Monday's conversation between
Solana and Larijani. She suggested Solana had repeated the main demand of
the five Security Council members plus Germany - the six world powers
trying to revive talks with Iran - that Tehran must freeze enrichment
before any talks begin.
Beyond that, Gallach said Solana had spoken of "the willingness to create
the conditions for the negotiations to resume."
"Larijani was very unhappy with the (UN) resolution," she told The
Associated Press. "At the same time, he accepted the invitation for
further contacts ... he indicated that he was willing to speak again in
the next few days, without naming a date."
The two men have been the principal negotiators on the issue of Iran's
nuclear program. The EU is eager to continue talks with the Iranians as
part of a "twin-track" approach - gradually imposing tougher sanctions if
Tehran refuses to halt enrichment while offering economic and political
advantages on behalf of the six powers if it falls into line.
The newest Security Council measure bans Iranian arms exports and freezes
the assets of 28 people and organizations involved in Iran's nuclear and
missile programs. About a third of those are linked to the Revolutionary
Guard.
Before the conversation between Solana and Larijani, a senior State
Department official urged the Iranians to choose negotiations over
confrontation.
"We would all ask Javier Solana to now undertake some vigorous diplomacy
with Larijani to see if we can convince the Iranians that the way forward
is not through punitive measures, through the Security Council, and
through sanctions, but through negotiations," said Nicholas Burns,
undersecretary for political affairs.
Iran said it remained interested in negotiations, without, however,
addressing the demand for an enrichment freeze.
"Iran is not after adventurism," said Kazem Jalali, the spokesman of
parliament's committee on foreign policy and national security, insisting
his country does not want "to make the situation more complicated."
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