TEHRAN: Iran said yesterday it welcomes “constructive” talks with world powers while the United States said Tehran could face “crippling” sanctions if such talks failed to end Iran’s suspected nuclear weapons program.
In an official statement, Iran said it believed discussions could resolve disputes between Tehran and the West, but it said it will press ahead with its work to develop atomic energy.
“Iran ... welcomes constructive and fair talks based on mutual respect and believes current problems could be resolved through talks,” the statement said.
“Tehran will continue its nuclear activities in an active interaction with the International Atomic Energy Agency in the framework of the Non-Proliferation Treaty like other agency members,” it said.
Last week, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran had prepared proposals to end the dispute, without giving details.
It was unclear whether Iran’s counteroffer would be essentially different from previous ill-fated exchanges.
“We don’t expect this package to be much different ... I think it will not be very helpful,” said one Western diplomat.
Speaking in Washington, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the United States believed its decision to seek to engage Iran over its nuclear program and other issues would increase its leverage to impose sanctions if talks fail.
“We actually believe that by following the diplomatic path we are on, we gain credibility and influence with a number of nations who would have to participate in order to make the sanctions regime as tight and crippling as we would want it to be,” Clinton told US lawmakers.
Meanwhile, the Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said Iran must be reined in if Israel and the Palestinians hope to move along the path to peace.
“We should continue on the path of peace with the Palestinians as if there is no Iran threat,” said Ayalon, a former Israeli ambassador to the US.
President Ahmadinejad also accused Israel yesterday of “brutal acts” and “ethnic cleansing” against the Palestinians. He told a conference in Tehran on Israel’s “Genocide and War Crimes in Gaza” that Israeli “criminals” should be brought to justice for the war in the Palestinian coastal strip in January.
