TEHRAN, 11 January 2004 — Iran yesterday rejected a US overture for talks between the estranged nations, saying that Washington must first end its hostile policy toward the Islamic state. “Right now there are no plans to commence a dialogue,” Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi told a news conference.
US President George W. Bush has branded Iran as part of an “axis of evil” along with North Korea and Iraq under the Saddam Hussein regime, but Washington sent aid to Iran after a deadly earthquake last month and has expressed hopes for a diplomatic opening.
Bush’s administration indicated Friday it wants to talk with Iran about its nuclear program, human rights and terrorism in the Middle East, but Kharrazi said the Iranians weren’t swayed by what they view as a lopsided proposal.
Iran accepted US help following the quake that killed more than 30,000 people in the ancient city of Bam, but it turned down a US proposal for more aid to be brought in by a high-profile team led by US Sen. Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina, who formerly was president of the American Red Cross.
Iran has accused Washington of grandstanding on the aid with no change of heart over the long-standing differences between the two sides.
Their ties were broken after radical students seized the US Embassy in Tehran in 1979 and Americans were held hostage for 444 days.
“What is important is mutual respect and the principle of equality, in a healthy atmosphere without violence,” Kharrazi said. “For this to happen, the United States must change its policy toward Iran.”
US Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Friday Iran’s acceptance of US aid after the Bam earthquake had opened up opportunities for dialogue between the foes although there was no reason to expect a quick political rapprochement.
Iranians widely term the United States “The Great Satan” and President Mohammad Khatami was quoted in the hard-line Jomhuri-ye Islami daily on Wednesday as saying it was an “enemy” and “unreliable”.
Iran has called on Washington to lift sanctions imposed in 1995, which among other things prevent US companies from investing in OPEC’s second-largest producer or trading in Iranian oil.
Bush has since asserted he was not trying to send any political signals to Iran and has continued to press concerns over the country’s nuclear program, rights record and alleged harboring of fugitive Al-Qaeda members. The two archenemies broke relations after Iran’s 1979 Revolution.
Speaking on the visit of Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, Kharrazi said the two discussed a range of issues such as the situation in Iraq and economic cooperation, including Iranian efforts to transit its gas through Turkey to European markets.
In an apparent reference to the Iraqi interim Governing Council’s agreement to a federal structure for Iraq and to enshrine Kurdish self-rule in three northern Iraqi provinces, both Kharrazi and Gul emphasized the importance of integrity in their common neighbor.
“The territorial integrity of Iraq is very important,” Kharrazi said, adding that Iraq’s neighbors planned to hold a fresh round table on the situation in Iraq in the coming days.
For his part, Gul also offered Turkey’s formal condolences to the victims of the Bam earthquake, and pledged that more Turkish aid was on its way.
Powell, in an interview with Abu Dhabi TV, said, “There are still serious political differences between the United States and Iran.”
But, Powell said, Iran’s acceptance of earthquake assistance “showed that in a crisis like this we could cooperate, and maybe that will lead to other areas of cooperation.”
At a news conference Thursday, Powell said Iran’s response was not a “political breakthrough, but it was, nevertheless, a human breakthrough.” And so, Powell said, “We will see what happens in the future with respect to our relationship with Iran.”
