| Thereby demonstrating that we don't place much stock in the WTO... |
After vetoing Iran's attempts to join the World Trade Organization 21 times since 1996, the U.S. finally acquiesced on Thursday to let Tehran begin membership talks. The decision by the U.S. appears to be a reward, coming only a day after the European Union and Iran agreed in Geneva to continue talks on Tehran's suspended nuclear activities. Britain, France and Germany had repeatedly offered to help Iran's bid for WTO membership in exchange for Tehran's compliance with demands to end its nuclear program. Mohammad Reza Alborzi, Iran's ambassador to the UN in Geneva, said that Iran had been requesting membership for nine years, but had been repeatedly vetoed by the U.S. |