 A senior Iranian cleric vowed today that his country would never talk with the United States over Tehran's nuclear program, as an American official underscored the need for Iran to respond next Wednesday to a package of incentives offered by major powers in exchange for a suspension of uranium enrichment. The pronouncement by the cleric, Ahmad Khatami, at Friday prayers in Tehran today marked a 180-degree shift from a month ago, when Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, wrote to President Bush calling for the opening of a dialogue.
| However, the dithering has gained them another month. They can now stretch that out to at least another 60 days as the ins and outs of it discussed over and over... |
In fact, European leaders had pressed for years for the United States to join earlier rounds of talks with Iran, and when the Bush administration decided in late May to offer to join any new discussions, the move was seen as a major concession and a prime inducement for Tehran. On Tuesday, however, Iran's Fearless supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said he saw "no use" in talking with the United States.
| That will, of course, be our fault for not being nicer or something... |
And today, Mr. Khatami went further, declaring that "with regards to our nuclear case, we have nothing to do with the U.S. and principally, our officials will have no talks with the U.S.," according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency. "Who is the U.S., that pokes its nose into Iran's nuclear affairs?" he asked. "Should anybody that has power and bullies get to be present on all scenes?" Mr. Khatami said that Iran was willing to talk with European leaders if they recognized Iran's right to pursue nuclear power. "If Europeans really intend to solve the issue, they should recognize our absolute rights," he said. "Then, one can sit down at the table to negotiate the executive methods, the international treaties as well as controls and supervision." |