[Al Arabiya] Iran rejects U.S. President Barack B.O.Obama's invitation to resolve differences because he is an "international villain," parliament speaker Ali Larijani said Saturday.
"How dare Obama announce that he wants to help the Iranian nation. He should know that he is an international villain," Larijani was quoted by ISNA news agency as saying during a visit to the southern city of Shiraz.
| " Mr Obama should know that we do not need his message, what we need is to be able to trust the words he utters" Parliament speaker Ali Larijani |
Larijani's remarks came a day after the American leader told the BBC's Persian service that the door for diplomacy with Tehran was still open over its longstanding nuclear dispute with the international community.
"Our strong preference is to resolve these issues diplomatically. I think that's in Iran's interest. I think that is in the interest of the international community," Obama said.
"I think it remains possible, but it is going to require a change in mindset inside the Iranian government," he said.
Relations between Tehran and Washington have become increasingly fraught since the presidency of Mahmoud
Short RoundAhmadinejad in 2005, and his defiant pursuit of Iran's controversial nuclear programme.
Ahmadinejad, while attending the UN General Assembly session in New York this week, said Tehran was open to new nuclear talks, provided the U.S. and the western powers were respectful to the Islamic republic.