It was the strongest signal yet of Iranian interest in reviving talks that stalled a year ago, leading to tighter international sanctions against Iran over its refusal to curb its nuclear work and make it more accessible to UN inspections.
“We have told our Turkish friends that we are in agreement with regard to holding these talks in Turkey,” Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki told a news conference.
Many countries are concerned that Iran is developing a nuclear industry in order to be able to produce nuclear weapons, something the Islamic Republic denies, saying it only seeks nuclear energy and other peaceful applications.
The eight-year-old stand-off has the potential to ignite a regional arms race and degenerate into a wider Middle East conflict. Israel and its main ally, the United States, do not rule out a preemptive strike to stop Iran, which rejects the Jewish state’s existence, from getting the bomb.
The “P5+1” powers — the United States, Russia, China, France and Britain, all permanent members of the UN Security Council, plus Germany — have offered talks on Nov. 15-17 in Vienna, an approach welcomed by Iran but not formally agreed to.
Iran has sent mixed signals over a resumption of talks. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has dismissed the sanctions as no more effective than a “used handkerchief.”
He has demanded the six powers state whether they come to the table as Iran’s friend or foe, and that they express their opinion of Israel’s alleged nuclear arsenal — topics Western diplomats have said are irrelevant to the main issue in talks. A senior Ahmadinejad aide said that even if Iran does agree to the talks it will not negotiate about its nuclear program — which would be a non-starter for the powers.
But Mottaki was upbeat. “Consultations are under way, they are on the right track,” he said.
“We are hopeful that the time and the agenda and content of the talks will soon be agreed upon by both parties and that both parties will start the talks as soon as possible.”
The Turkish Foreign Ministry said Mottaki had been in touch to suggest holding talks there. “We said to Iranian officials that as Turkey we are ready to do our best in that regard. But there is no decision yet regarding the exact timing and place of the talks,” an official said.
A spokesman for Catherine Ashton, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, said she was aware of Mottaki’s comments, “but we have not yet received an official proposal from Iran in this regard.
“Once we receive an official proposal for a specific time and place to meet, we will consider this with our (P5+1) partners and respond accordingly,” the spokesman said.
Similar talks in October last year concluded with a fuel swap deal in principle under which Iran would have shipped out the bulk of its stock of low-enriched uranium in exchange for high-enriched fuel for a medical reactor in Tehran.
That understanding unraveled when the Iran later tried to impose further conditions.
Turkey and Brazil — both friendly toward Iran — tried to revive the fuel swap, but the deal they struck with Tehran in May was considered by Washington to be too little and too late to stop tighter sanctions.
In June, the Security Council imposed a fourth round of sanctions on Iran, reiterating its demand it suspend uranium enrichment — a process which some countries fear could lead to Iran producing weapons-grade nuclear fuel.
Along with tougher restrictions imposed by the United States and the EU, the measures have hurt Iran’s ability to conduct financial transactions and have put many companies off from investing in its vital energy sector.
