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Iran welcomes U.S. offer of talks but rejects condition

Atul Aneja

Sources close to Supreme Leader yet to express opinion on the issue

FOCUS ON IRAN: U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (left), who arrived in Vienna on Thursday for attending the meeting of the U.S., Europe, Russia and China on Iran's nuclear programme, with Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik. — PHOTO: AP

DUBAI: Iran has welcomed talks with the United States but has objected to Washington's condition that dialogue was possible only if Teheran suspended nuclear enrichment.

"Iran welcomes dialogue under just conditions but [we] won't give up our [nuclear] rights," Iranian state television quoted Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki as saying. "We won't negotiate about the Iranian nation's natural nuclear rights but we are prepared, within a defined, just framework and without any discrimination, to hold dialogue about [our] common concerns," he observed.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Wednesday had declared that Washington would participate in talks after Teheran fully and verifiable suspended its enrichment programme. Later U.S. President George W. Bush said that, "Our message to the Iranians is that one, you won't have a weapon, and two, that you must verifiably suspend any programmes at which point we will come to the negotiating table to work on a way forward."

"No incriminating evidence"

Mr. Mottaki, on his part indicated that Iran was not inclined to suspend uranium enrichment. "There is no evidence proving Iran's diversion [toward nuclear weapons]. Therefore, Iran is interested in continuing this path," he said.

Analysts point out that the final word on the Iranian disposition towards the U.S. statement might not have come so far. They point out that a more complete picture would be available once the head of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, who is known to be close to Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader revealed his mind on the subject. Besides, the content of the address by important clerics during Friday prayers would also show how the Iranian religious establishment was interpreting the U.S. declaration.

Earlier, Kazem Jalali, spokesman for the Foreign Policy and National Security Committee of the Iranian Parliament said that there was a possibility that the U.S. move might be viewed positively, provided the preconditions that had been imposed were dropped. Responding to the Ms. Rice's statement, China has also voiced its concerns about the conditionality for the talks that had been imposed.

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