HELLO MISTERS AND LADYS.
We are glad to see an improvement in relations between the United States and Iran," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told a press conference in Beijing on Thursday. "We encourage Iran and other parties to have active contacts to seek an all-round, appropriate and long-term solution to the Iran nuclear issue."
The State Department had said that the United States would be at the table "from now on" when senior P5+1 meet with Iranian officials to discuss the country's nuclear program.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the United States would now be a "full participant" rather than an observer in the talks, which include it and the other four permanent members of the UN Security Council - Britain, China, France and Russia - along with Germany.
"We believe that pursuing very careful engagement on a range of issues that affect our interests and the interests of the world with Iran makes sense," Clinton said. "There is nothing more important than trying to convince Iran to cease its efforts to obtain a nuclear weapon."
State Department spokesman Robert Wood said the decision was conveyed to representatives of Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia by the third-ranking US diplomat William Burns at a Wednesday meeting in London. That group, known as the "P5+1," announced earlier that it would invite Iran to attend a new session aimed at breaking a deadlock in the talks.
"The US remains committed to the P5+1 process; what is different is that the US will join P5+1 discussions with Iran from now on," Wood said, adding that Washington was hopeful Iran would attend.
"If Iran accepts, we hope this will be the occasion to seriously engage Iran on how to break the logjam of recent years and work in a cooperative manner to resolve the outstanding international concerns about its nuclear program," he said. "Any breakthrough will be the result of the collective efforts of all the parties, including Iran."
Wood said the administration wants a diplomatic resolution to the nuclear issue and believes that requires "a willingness to engage directly with each other on the basis of mutual respect and mutual interests."
"We hope that the government of Iran chooses to reciprocate," he added.
The invitation is to be sent to the Iranians by European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana. In a statement the group said it welcomed the "new direction" of US policy toward Iran. No time frame was given for a date of the meeting.
Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that his country welcomes talks with the United States should it prove to be "honest" in extending its hand toward Iran, one of the strongest signals yet that Teheran welcomes US President Barack Obama's calls for dialogue.
"The Iranian nation welcomes a hand extended to it should it really and truly be based on honesty, justice and respect," Ahmadinejad said in a speech broadcast live on state television.
"If you (Obama) say you are after change ... change your method, change your literature and your way," Ahmadinejad said.
Through the negotiations, the P5+1 group has offered Iran a package of incentives to stop enriching and reprocessing uranium. Teheran has thus far rebuffed the offer despite the fact that its refusal has led to the imposition of three rounds of economic, trade and financial sanctions by the UN Security Council.
Individual countries, led by the United States and members of the European Union, have also imposed their own sanctions on Iran.
The United States and Iran have not had diplomatic relations since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and subsequent hostage taking at the US Embassy in Teheran and official exchanges between the two nations have largely been limited to talks over security in Iraq and the situation in Afghanistan.
The Bush administration had pursued a policy of isolating Iran and not attending the P5+1 group's meetings with Iranian officials on the nuclear issue. In a brief break with that, however, the administration sent Burns, a career diplomat to one such meeting in Geneva last July.
After that, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Iran had not been serious at the meeting and such contact ceased.
As a presidential candidate Obama signaled a willingness to open direct talks with Iran and Wednesday's step is the latest in a series of moves that the administration has taken to reach out to Iran. These initiatives have included inviting Teheran to an international meeting on Afghanistan late last month, at which US officials in another break from Bush-era policy delivered a written message to Iranian diplomats politely asking for information about detained and missing Americans in the country.
Also last month, Obama recorded a video addressed to the Iranian people, in which he said the US is prepared to end years of strained relations if Teheran tones down its bellicose rhetoric.
The State Department had said that the United States would be at the table "from now on" when senior P5+1 meet with Iranian officials to discuss the country's nuclear program.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the United States would now be a "full participant" rather than an observer in the talks, which include it and the other four permanent members of the UN Security Council - Britain, China, France and Russia - along with Germany.
"We believe that pursuing very careful engagement on a range of issues that affect our interests and the interests of the world with Iran makes sense," Clinton said. "There is nothing more important than trying to convince Iran to cease its efforts to obtain a nuclear weapon."
State Department spokesman Robert Wood said the decision was conveyed to representatives of Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia by the third-ranking US diplomat William Burns at a Wednesday meeting in London. That group, known as the "P5+1," announced earlier that it would invite Iran to attend a new session aimed at breaking a deadlock in the talks.
"The US remains committed to the P5+1 process; what is different is that the US will join P5+1 discussions with Iran from now on," Wood said, adding that Washington was hopeful Iran would attend.
"If Iran accepts, we hope this will be the occasion to seriously engage Iran on how to break the logjam of recent years and work in a cooperative manner to resolve the outstanding international concerns about its nuclear program," he said. "Any breakthrough will be the result of the collective efforts of all the parties, including Iran."
Wood said the administration wants a diplomatic resolution to the nuclear issue and believes that requires "a willingness to engage directly with each other on the basis of mutual respect and mutual interests."
"We hope that the government of Iran chooses to reciprocate," he added.
The invitation is to be sent to the Iranians by European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana. In a statement the group said it welcomed the "new direction" of US policy toward Iran. No time frame was given for a date of the meeting.
Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that his country welcomes talks with the United States should it prove to be "honest" in extending its hand toward Iran, one of the strongest signals yet that Teheran welcomes US President Barack Obama's calls for dialogue.
"The Iranian nation welcomes a hand extended to it should it really and truly be based on honesty, justice and respect," Ahmadinejad said in a speech broadcast live on state television.
"If you (Obama) say you are after change ... change your method, change your literature and your way," Ahmadinejad said.
Through the negotiations, the P5+1 group has offered Iran a package of incentives to stop enriching and reprocessing uranium. Teheran has thus far rebuffed the offer despite the fact that its refusal has led to the imposition of three rounds of economic, trade and financial sanctions by the UN Security Council.
Individual countries, led by the United States and members of the European Union, have also imposed their own sanctions on Iran.
The United States and Iran have not had diplomatic relations since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and subsequent hostage taking at the US Embassy in Teheran and official exchanges between the two nations have largely been limited to talks over security in Iraq and the situation in Afghanistan.
The Bush administration had pursued a policy of isolating Iran and not attending the P5+1 group's meetings with Iranian officials on the nuclear issue. In a brief break with that, however, the administration sent Burns, a career diplomat to one such meeting in Geneva last July.
After that, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Iran had not been serious at the meeting and such contact ceased.
As a presidential candidate Obama signaled a willingness to open direct talks with Iran and Wednesday's step is the latest in a series of moves that the administration has taken to reach out to Iran. These initiatives have included inviting Teheran to an international meeting on Afghanistan late last month, at which US officials in another break from Bush-era policy delivered a written message to Iranian diplomats politely asking for information about detained and missing Americans in the country.
Also last month, Obama recorded a video addressed to the Iranian people, in which he said the US is prepared to end years of strained relations if Teheran tones down its bellicose rhetoric.
SALAMA AL MALECUM
GUERRILLERO VALENCIANO
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