Nuclear Crisis

[Rasputin]

Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, praised on Friday a six-nation incentive package aimed at resolving the international dispute over Tehran's nuclear programme.
Raising hopes for a breakthrough, Mr Ahmadinejad said the package - which aims to curtail Iran's uranium enrichment activities - was a "step forward".

But despite the conciliatory tone of his comments, the president said his government had made no decision about whether to accept the proposal, which is backed by the US, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany.

"Generally speaking, we're regarding this offer as a step forward and I have instructed my colleagues to carefully consider it," he told reporters in Shanghai. "In due time they will give the response."
Under the package proposal, the EU has offered to provide trade and economic benefits to Iran in return for a halting of its nuclear programme. On the table is also a transfer of peaceful nuclear technologies, airplane parts and support for Iran to join the World Trade Organisation.

The package is supported by the US, which believes that Iran is enriching uranium so that it can produce enough high-grade fissile material for warheads.

Last month, Washington offered Iran the first face-to-face talks between the two sides in more than 25 years, but it has also threatened to seek UN sanctions against Tehran if it continues its enrichment activities.

On Friday, the top US delegate to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Gregory Schulte, warned that if Iran rejected the incentives, it could face "the weight of the security council".

Mr Ahmadinejad denied that his country's nuclear program had a military application. "Sanctions shouldn't be used as a form of intimidation against countries of the world," he said.

The Iranian president is in Shanghai for a summit of central Asian nations, where he has taken the opportunity to press Tehran's case with the Chinese president, Hu Jintao, and the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. Both countries support the package and oppose US attempts to bring the issue to the security council.

After bilateral talks with Mr Ahmadinejad, Mr Putin said Iran has the right to nuclear technology if it poses no concern to the rest of the world. Mr Hu said he had urged the Iranian president to accept the proposal. Beijing is particularly keen to see a peaceful resolution of the dispute because Iran is the third biggest supplier of the crude oil that China needs to fuel its booming economy.

Whether Mr Ahmadinejad maintains his conciliatory tone after he leaves China remains to be seen. Iran continues to send out mixed signals. The country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, appeared to maintain a hardline approach in his latest reported comments.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran will not succumb to these pressures," state television quoted Khamenei as saying.

[Rasputin]

Iran said on Sunday a "positive atmosphere" had been created that could help resolve a dispute over Iran's nuclear program but did not say when Tehran would respond to an offer made by world powers to end the standoff.

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki also said any deal would need talks with the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council -- the United States, China, Russia, Britain and France -- plus Germany, which originally presented the package.

The six states offered Iran incentives to halt uranium enrichment, a process the West believes Iran is using to make atomic weapons despite Iranian denials. Tehran faces possible sanctions if it rejects the deal that was offered on June 6.

Western officials fear Iran may stall a decision past an unofficial July deadline to buy time to perfect enrichment technology and expand the program to make it a fait accompli.

"The positive atmosphere that has been created ... could create the best opportunity to pave the way to reaching an understanding," Mottaki said in comments about the atomic dispute, broadcast on state television.

Senior Iranian officials, including President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, have recently made more upbeat comments about the package but have not given any indication that Iran is ready to give up enrichment, the crux of the proposal.

POSITIVE NOISES

U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, speaking at a news conference in Copenhagen on Sunday, welcomed the positive noises coming out of Tehran.

"I believe that we've all noticed that the comments so far have been constructive and I hope that they will come and sit around the table with all concerned and find a solution," he said. "In my judgment the only solution is a negotiated one."

But some Iran officials have suggested that Iran may only be ready to negotiate over plans for industrial-scale enrichment.

"We want negotiations without any preconditions," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told a weekly news conference. The term "precondition" usually refers to the demand that Iran stop enrichment as a prerequisite for talks.

"It is America which has put a precondition and has the illogical demand which limits the scope of the negotiations," Asefi said.

Under Iran's system of clerical rule, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has the final say in state matters and last week he said making nuclear fuel remained Iran's objective.

Although there is no official deadline, Western diplomats say they hope for a reply by the time heads of state from the Group of Eight countries assemble in Russia on July 15.

Mottaki gave no indication of when Iran would respond.

"About the package, the assessment has started with precision and seriousness. By God's will, by the end of the assessment, we will first inform our European counterparts and then the public," he said.

[Rasputin]

US President George W Bush has warned Iran it will face progressively tougher sanctions if it rejects an offer to freeze nuclear work and rejoin talks.
He said Iran risks "further isolation" if it rejects the deal, which includes trade and security guarantees if Iran stops controversial nuclear work.

The EU and US want Iran to ease fears that is trying to build a nuclear bomb.

Iran, which maintains its nuclear work does not have a military aspect, has yet to formally respond to the offer.

Describing the offer as a "step forward", Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said his country is preparing to respond with suggestions of its own.

Iran will submit its views after its experts have finished examining the proposal, Iranian state TV quoted Mr Ahmadinejad as saying.

'Real benefits'

Mr Bush said an Iranian rejection of the offer "will result in action before the Security Council, further isolation from the world and progressively stronger political and economic sanctions".


Ahmadinejad has said Iran does not want nuclear weapons

Mr Bush has already said Iran has weeks rather than months to respond to the talks offer.

According to the BBC's State Department correspondent, Jonathan Beale, Mr Bush's latest remarks suggest US patience is wearing thin.

He says the US has again stepped up the pressure on Iran after weeks of restraint, spelling out the consequences if it does not accept the offer.

Addressing a US merchant navy academy on the eve of a summit with European leaders in Vienna, the US president said Iran's leaders should act for "more hopeful future for their people".

"They should accept our offer, abandon any ambitions to obtain nuclear weapons and come into compliance with their international obligations," he said.

"We hope they will accept our offer and voluntarily suspend these activities so we can work out an agreement that will bring Iran real benefits."


'Blix warning'

Iran has been offered a supply of enriched uranium from Russia as part of a range of incentives and penalties presented two weeks ago by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council - the US, UK, France, Russia and China - and Germany.

They are also thought to include offers of assistance to Iran in building a light-water nuclear reactor for civilian use, plus financial incentives.

The US recently changed its long-standing opposition to direct talks and said it would join negotiations with Iran if it suspended enrichment.

According to the AFP news agency, the EU has given Iran until 29 June to respond to the offer.

The agency quotes diplomats as saying EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana told Iran it must answer to the talks offer by that date, when foreign ministers from the G8 bloc meet in Moscow.

Iran has insisted it has not received any deadline.

Meanwhile, the former UN chief weapons inspector, Hans Blix, has reportedly said Iran could produce a nuclear bomb within five years if it is allowed to enrich uranium on an industrial scale.

"By 2010, 2011 they could probably have a nuclear weapon, if they want it," Mr Blix is quoted by the Associated Press news agency as saying.

[Rasputin]

President Bush and European leaders kick off talks this week in Vienna on a problem that has defied solution for years, with the cost of failure only seeming to get more dangerous--how to talk Iran out of a nuclear weapons program it denies exists.

That denial is making diplomatic maneuvering difficult, especially given the prewar insistence by the U.S. that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. The International Atomic Energy Agency has acknowledged finding "no smoking gun" proving Iran's intentions, though there is broad international agreement that those plans include a bomb.

Bush broke with nearly three decades of U.S. policy toward Iran by offering negotiations that could lead to a new era of economic and cultural cooperation with a nation that once held Americans hostage for 444 days. But on the eve of his departure, the president reiterated that those talks can begin only if Iran suspends its enrichment of uranium.

"Iran's leaders have a clear choice," Bush said Monday, delivering a commencement address at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in New York before embarking on his three-day trip to Europe. "If Iran's leaders want peace and prosperity and a more hopeful future for their people, they should accept our offer, abandon any ambitions to obtain nuclear weapons and come into compliance with their international obligations."

Despite Iran's insistence that it is interested in developing nuclear technology solely for civilian power generation, experts inside and outside the administration say the evidence is indisputable that Iran's long-concealed nuclear program is geared toward development of weaponry.

Iran began its nuclear program in the mid-1980s, aided by technology obtained through a secretive network led by Abdul Qadeer Khan, mastermind of Pakistan's nuclear program. The government recently resumed enrichment of uranium, which can be used to generate electricity when enriched at low levels and can become the core of a nuclear bomb when enriched at much greater levels.

Amid signs that another U.S. adversary, North Korea, is ratcheting up its own nuclear weapons program, analysts say they have no doubt where the Iranians are heading. Iran, they note, has rich oil reserves that could be used for energy needs, and could purchase enough enriched uranium for civilian purposes--raising doubts about its plans to greatly expand its enrichment facilities.

"The evidence looks pretty clear," said Leonard Spector, who heads the Washington office of the Monterey Institute's Center for Nonproliferation Studies. "They pursued this thing in secrecy for so long. They worked with A.Q. Khan. . . . This looks like the classic clandestine nuclear program, with echoes of Pakistan."

The U.S. severed relations with Iran in 1980 during the holding of 52 hostages taken in the storming of the American Embassy in Tehran. But now, with a powerful yet tenuous alliance of the U.S., Britain, Germany, France, Russia and China offering Iran economic incentives to abandon any aspirations to develop nuclear weaponry, the Iranian president has signaled he is open to talks.

"We're regarding this offer as a step forward, and I have instructed my colleagues to carefully consider it," President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said last week after meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao in Shanghai.

The Bush administration insists that Iran has little time to decide before the U.S. and its European allies press for sanctions in the UN Security Council. The Vienna-based IAEA already has found Iran in violation of the international nuclear non-proliferation treaty and has referred the matter to the Security Council.

"They're clearly considering the proposal," Stephen Hadley, Bush's national security adviser, said of Iran. "We think that's a good thing."

An Iranian response, he said, is expected within "weeks, not months--but weeks, not days. And we're kind of in that zone at this point."

In meeting Wednesday with leaders of the governing body of the 25-nation European Union, Bush will press for more of the support that the U.S. already has found from Britain, Germany and France, which have led negotiations with Iran.

He will travel to Budapest on Thursday to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution, another chance to repeat a message he has carried across Europe about the defeat of tyranny.

The incentives the U.S. and its allies are offering Iran--from replacement civilian aircraft parts to assistance in building power-generating nuclear reactors--also include an openness to letting Iran enrich its own nuclear fuel in the future.

But Bush insists that enrichment must be suspended now before the U.S. will enter talks that could lead to a new relationship, including trade and cultural exchanges.

"Our position on Iran is real simple," said White House press secretary Tony Snow. "You go ahead and take care of business on the nuclear front, [and] we'll talk about a whole lot of stuff, and we'll be happy to cooperate on any number of fronts."

Iran has been exploring the nuclear front since the mid-1980s. But the program was long hidden, with the IAEA reporting in 2005 that Iran had followed "a policy of concealment" until 2003.

Iran says it has resumed enrichment of uranium with 164 centrifuges operating at a plant in Natanz, south of Tehran, and maintains that it is developing fuel for power plants. Those centrifuges are far fewer than needed to develop weaponry, experts say, but Iran may be able to expand that machinery rapidly by the end of this year.

Iran needs about 1,500 centrifuges operating in concert to produce a bomb, said David Albright, a physicist and president of the Institute for Science and International Security who worked with the IAEA in the mid-1990s in evaluating Iraq's nuclear program.

"There is sort of an expectation that [Iran] will try to put in five or six of these 164-centrifuge cascades by the end of the year," Albright said. "A tremendous amount is known about the Iranian enrichment program, mainly through the IAEA's inspections and through Iran's procurement efforts" in attempting to obtain material from other countries.

What is unknown, Albright said, is what sort of program Iran may have for making weapons.

"A weaponization facility is so small and so hard to find, there is nothing you can do to guarantee you will find it," he said. "Iran short-circuits that by cutting off the inspections that would help you find this stuff, and they did that many months ago."

The IAEA has acknowledged finding "no smoking gun" proving Iranian intentions of building a bomb. But analysts insist that a nuclear program such as Iran's in an oil-rich nation--with a world market of enriched uranium sufficient to sustain its civilian nuclear power program--can only have the purpose of bomb-building.

"We do not dispute that right to have nuclear technology," said Greg Schulte, the U.S. representative to the IAEA. But he called Iran's nuclear project "really a cover for a military program. . . . The problem here [is] when you produce low-enriched uranium, you are 70 percent of the way to producing high-enriched uranium. It's just a matter of reconfiguring the pipes a little bit."

[Rasputin]

The EU's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, has made an unexpected private offer of last-minute talks to persuade the Iranian government to accept the west's nuclear package.
Sources in Tehran said on Tuesday that Mr Solana had had telephone conversations with Ali Larijani, the chief Iranian nuclear negotiator, in an attempt to clarify "ambiguities" in the joint offer from the United States, Britain and other European countries.

Iran has so far declined to respond formally to the offer that includes a range of incentives should it agree to suspend uranium enrichment. Although it has described the package as a "positive step forward", Tehran has said some of the elements are vague and uncertain.

Saeid Jalili, deputy minister of foreign affairs, confirmed in an interview that renewed discussions were under way. "My colleagues have talked with Mr Solana over the phone and the gentleman has expressed a willingness to come and explain the ambiguities. That is good, and we welcome that.
"So far we have not arranged anything. It is just an expression of willingness."

A western diplomat confirmed the EU initiative. "We have offered them a further meeting. It would be semi-private and there would be no press conferences." He said the meeting could take place in Vienna or Tehran.

Mr Solana's offer has underlined the high stakes riding on Iran's acceptance of the western package, designed to halt the long-running dispute over its controversial nuclear activities.

The EU said on Monday it expected to have a formal response - and hopefully an acceptance of the offer - by the end of the month. The western diplomat agreed there was a de facto deadline: "Time is important. The G8 foreign ministers meet at the end of the month and the G8 [leaders] in mid-July. They will say what is Iran's response to our proposals."

But Iran has publicly insisted it will not be pressurised and will accept no pre-conditions for talks. The foreign minister, Manouchehr Mottaki, said this week the package was being debated by expert committees. Iran's final word is expected to come from the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, or from Mr Larijani.

The US president, George Bush, warned Iran on Monday that Washington "would not waver" from its insistence that Tehran cease all enrichment activities at its Natanz nuclear facility. If Iran did not comply, he implied the US would refuse to participate in future negotiations.

[Rasputin]

President Bush said Iran on Wednesday was taking too long to say whether it will suspend nuclear work that could lead to the development of atomic weapons and warned North Korea not to test-fire a long-range missile.


Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had said earlier on Wednesday that Tehran would respond by August 22 to a proposal by major powers for incentives in return for Iran abandoning its uranium enrichment program.

Bush said that looked like "an awful long time" for Iran to respond to the offer which was presented on June 6.

"It should not take the Iranians that long to analyze what is a reasonable deal," Bush told a news conference after talks in Vienna with European Union leaders.

Bush has previously said Iran should have weeks, not months, to come up with an answer.

Six powers -- the United States, Britain, Germany, France, China and Russia -- have set an informal deadline of mid-July, when a Group of Eight industrialized nations summit is planned.

Bush also warned North Korea on Wednesday against test-firing its long-range Taepodong-2 missile, saying it must abide by international agreements.

"North Koreans have made agreements with us in the past and we expect them to keep their agreements," Bush said.

Washington says there is evidence North Korea might test-fire the Taepodong-2 and has activated its ground-based interceptor missile-defense system in case Pyongyang goes ahead with a launch.

"WHAT'S PAST IS PAST"

Bush urged Europeans to move from the widespread resentment in the continent to the war in Iraq in 2003 and support the U.S.-led efforts to stabilize the country.

"I fully understand we have had our differences on Iraq. I can understand the difficulties but what's past is past and what is ahead is a hopeful democracy in the Middle East," he said.

The summit also touched on differences between the United States and Europe on issues such as the controversial Guantanamo Bay prison camp in Cuba and U.S. visa requirements for many eastern European countries.

On Guantanamo, Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel -- whose government holds the rotating EU presidency -- welcomed a reiteration by Bush that he wanted to close the camp eventually but stressed the importance of the issue to Europe.

"The problem is, and I will be very frank on that, we can only have a victory in the fight against terror if we don't undermine our common values," Schuessel said.

On a row between Washington and Brussels on global trade negotiations, both Bush and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said they believed a successful deal was still possible, despite several missed deadlines.

"The point is we are committed to a successful round and it is going to take hard work," Bush said.

[Rasputin]

Iran has said it will respond by mid-August to a package of incentives on its nuclear programme offered by UN Security Council nations plus Germany.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made the announcement on state TV.

After an EU-US summit in Vienna, US President George W Bush said it was a "long time" to answer a "reasonable deal" that was offered on 6 June.

The US believes Iran is trying to make nuclear weapons but Tehran insists the programme is for energy purposes.

President Ahmadinejad told a crowd in western Iran in a broadcast speech: "We are studying the proposals. Hopefully, we will present our views about the package by mid-August."

'Right choice'

The package is said to offer help with Iran's civilian nuclear programme and to guarantee supplies of reactor fuel, as well as various trade advantages and security guarantees.

It requires Iran to halt its production of enriched uranium, which can also be used in nuclear warheads.


President Ahmadinejad said Iran was still studying the package

But in his speech, President Ahmadinejad again stressed Iran had "definite and legitimate rights" to a nuclear programme.

"We will negotiate with everyone... but negotiations should be as equals and without any preconditions imposed," he said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki is to meet his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, in Berlin on Saturday to discuss the situation.

The issue was also high on the agenda at the EU-US summit which took place in Vienna on Wednesday.

Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel of Austria, which holds the European Union's rotating presidency, said Iran had "to make the right choice" and curtail its nuclear ambitions.

President Bush said world powers were united to prevent Iran from acquiring the know-how to make nuclear weapons.

He said: "It should not take the Iranians that long to analyse what is a reasonable deal."

The US has warned it will step up pressure and push for sanctions if Iran rejects the package.

Analysts say there may be divisions in the Iranian hierarchy, with some favouring outright rejection and some acceptance as long as certain requirements are changed.

[donsaeid]

آنچه را كه ايران در بدست گيري ابتكارعمل در موقعيت كنوني نبايد فراموش كند اين است كه رويكرد جهاني در مفهوم عام و رويكرد اعضاي 5+1 در مفهومي خاص باعث اتفاق نظر بين المللي در رابطه با پرونده هسته اي ايران و ايجاد "پارادايم مذاكره" و انتظار شنيدن پاسخ مثبت ايران شده است، كه اظهار نظرهاي متعدد سران كشورها، دبيران سازمانها و نمايندگان گروهها مؤيد اين مطلب است.


چكيده: از زماني كه پنج كشور دارنده حق وتو و آلمان بر سر يك تعامل كلي در مسئله هسته اي ايران، تحت عنوان (بسته مشوقها) به توافق رسيدند و اين بسته را در تاريخ 6 ژوئن ( 16 خردادماه) توسط مسئول سياست خارجي اتحاديه اروپا ( خاوير سولانا ) به مقامات ايران ارائه كردند، ايران سعي كرد ابتكار عمل را بدست گيرد؛ چراكه بنظر مي رسد پس از سه سال چالش غرب و ايران و روند فرسايشي در مورد فعاليتهاي هسته اي ايران، اين بار غرب و مشخصاً امريكا، با چرخش محسوس ديدگاهها، صرف نظر از رويكردي كاملاً خصمانه و تحكم آميز سعي بر متقاعد كردن ايران در قالبي ديپلماتيك و امتيازي دارند.


بي ترديد ناكامي ايالات متحده امريكا درهمراه كردن 4 عضو اصلي شوراي امنيت سازمان ملل با سياست هاي تنبيهي برعليه ايران پس از گزارش پرونده هسته اي ايران به شوراي امنيت و همچنين افزايش هزينه هاي حضور امريكا درعراق و از طرفي رويارويي مستقيم ايران و امريكا در سه حوزه مهم فلسطين، عراق و پرونده هسته اي ايران، در تغيير گفتمان امريكا در پيشنهاد اخير نيز تأثير تعيين كننده اي داشته است.
اما آنچه را كه ايران در بدست گيري ابتكارعمل در موقعيت كنوني نبايد فراموش كند اين است كه رويكرد جهاني در مفهوم عام و رويكرد اعضاي 5+1 در مفهومي خاص باعث اتفاق نظر بين المللي در رابطه با پرونده هسته اي ايران و ايجاد "پارادايم مذاكره" و انتظار شنيدن پاسخ مثبت ايران شده است، كه اظهار نظرهاي متعدد سران كشورها، دبيران سازمانها و نمايندگان گروهها مؤيد اين مطلب است.
در اين راستا ايران در دو رويكرد متفاوت با پيشنهاد اخير 5+1 قرار گرفته است. اول آنكه با اتخاذ موضع متفاوت و يكسويه با موقعيت ياد شده به چالشهاي كنوني دامن زده و به رويارويي مستقيم با امريكا ادامه دهد كه باتوجه به اتفاق نظر و همسويي كلي بين المللي بنظر مي رسد منافع ملي را در مخاطره قرار داده و به انزواي ايران در عرصه بين المللي و حتي در منطقه بيانجامد و دوم اينكه با موقعيت سنجي و استفاده از شرايط كنوني ابتكارعمل را بدست گرفته و با بررسي پيشنهاد غرب و امريكا، به "تعادل سازي مشوقها با تعهدات خواسته شده " پرداخته و آنرا در قالب اصلاحيه اي درمدت زمان منطقي به طرف مقابل ارائه دهد و در قالب مذاكراتي "هدفمند و غيرفرسايشي" با تأكيد بر برسميت شناختن حقوق حقه ملت ايران دراستفاده از فن آموري هسته اي به رفع نگرانيهاي بين الملي دراين زمينه بپردازد و با ترفيع و تثبيت جايگاه در عرصه بين المللي، غرور ملي را نيز در عرصه داخلي حفظ نمايد.
در اين رابطه و با توجه به پاسخ اوليه ايران كه بطور رسمي و توسط منوچهر متكي در مادريد اسپانيا، با مثبت ارزيابي كردن پيشنهاد 5+1، ابراز اميدواري كرد ايران در مدت زمان مقتضي اين پيشنهاد را بررسي و پاسخ دهد، بنظر مي رسد ايران راهكار دوم را درپيش گرفته است.
براين اساس دستگاه ديپلماسي ايران در آزموني جدي و سرنوشت ساز قرار گرفته كه چشم جهانيان را به ايران دوخته است و بنظرمي رسد از زمان ارائه بسته پيشنهادي در 16 خردادماه تا زمان ارائه پاسخ ايران كه احتمالاً تا قبل از برگزاري اجلاس G8 در روسيه دراواسط جولاي (24 تا 26 تيرماه)، ايران چهار گام ديپلماتيك را طي كند كه حائز اهميت بسياري است.
اولين گام ديپلماتيك ايران به پيشنهاد غرب و امريكا (پس از اظهار نظرهاي غيررسمي و غالباً متفاوت)، اعلام ارسال بسته متقابل و پاسخ مثبت ايران به اين بسته پس از گذشت حدود 10 روز از ارائه آن بود كه توسط وزير خارجه ايران و در جمع خبرنگاران در مادريد اسپانيا اعلام شد. متكي با مثبت ارزيابي كردن پيشنهادات به خبرنگارن گفت: به نظر ميرسد آمريكا و متحدان اروپايياش به همراه روسيه و چين اين بار تصميم گرفتهاند با زبان و رفتاري وارد مذاكرات شوند كه حاوي احترام بيشتر به ايران باشد و نه به شيوه سابق با روشي كاملاً تنبيهي با ايران روبرو شوند .
اظهارت متكي حاكي از آن بود كه اين بار ايران اصطلاحاً در پي شوت كردن صرف توپ به زمين اروپا و امريكا نيست و درصدد آن است تا با درايت و درقالب پروسه اي هدفمند حفظ توپ كند تا در بهترين موقعيت آنرا به زمين حريف ببرد و به نتيجه برسد .
در دومين گام مقامات بلند پايه ايراني رايزنيهاي ديپلماتيك خود را در سطح منطقه اي و بين المللي آغاز كردند. از آنجمله مي توان به سفر علي لاريجاني به مصر و گفت و گوي او با حسني مبارك و عمرو موسي اشاره كرد.
به فاصله چند روز بعد از بازگشت لاريجاني از مصر، عمرو موسي دبير كل اتحاديه عرب اعلام كرد كه اتحاديه عرب از موضع ايران براي استفاده صلح آميز از انرژي هسته اي حمايت مي كند، زيرا اين حق در پيمان ان.پي.تي براي ايران تضمين شده است.
اظهارات عمرو موسي حاكي از موفقيت لاريجاني در اطمينان سازي ميان كشورهاي عربي و تشويق آنها براي حمايت از مواضع هسته اي ايران بود.
لاريجاني بعد از سفر به مصر عازم الجزاير شد و قصد داشت بعد از آن عازم اسپانيا شود.
اهميت اين سفرهاي ديپلماتيك تابدان جا بود كه پس از آنكه اعلام شد لاريجاني به دليل مسائل پزشكي نمي تواند به اسپانيا برود، منوچهر متكي كه بايد رييس جمهور ايران را در چين براي شركت در اجلاس رهبران سازمان همكاري هاي شانگهاي همراهي مي كرد عازم مادريد شد و محمود احمدي نژاد، بدون وزير امور خارجه خود راهي پكن شد تا در اجلاس شانگهاي شركت كرده و با ولاديمير پوتين، رئيس جمهور روسيه و هو جين تائو، رئيس جمهور چين نيز ديدار و گفت و گو كند.

در ادامه گام دوم، سفرهاي ديپلماتيك بسيار مهمي نيز به ايران انجام شد.
سعود الفيصل، وزير امور خارجه عربستان با سفر غير منتظره به ايران و ديدار با رهبري پيام ملك عبدالله پادشاه عربستان را تقديم ايشان كرد و همچنين با رئيس جمهور و رئيس مجمع تشخيص مصلحت نظام نيز ديدارهايي داشت. جالب آنكه الفيصل در حالي به ايران سفر كرد كه از طرف شوراي همكاري خليج فارس، وزير خارجه عمان براي رايزني هاي هسته اي با ايران انتخاب شده بود .
در اين راستا بنظر مي رسد وزير خارجه عربستان نيز بسته اي را از جانب شوراي همكاري خليج فارس به ايران آورده باشد.
همچنين يكي ديگر از سياستمداران عرب كه وارد تهران شد عبدالعزيز حكيم، از رهبران بلند پايه عراق و رئيس مجلس اعلاي شيعيان عراق بود كه خبرگزاري هاي بين المللي از قول منابع خود هدف از اين سفر را احتمال ميانجيگري در روابط ايران و آمريكا داده بودند.

گام دوم ديپلماتيك ايران نيز موفق بنظر مي رسد، چراكه رايزني هاي ديپلماتيك همزمان را در ديگر نقاط جهان تحت تأثير قرار داد كه نمونه بارز آن سفرهاي اروپايي ايهود اولمرت، نخست وزير اسرائيل بود كه بنا بر اخبار منتشر شده نه تنها نتوانست اقدامي در جهت جلب حمايت لندن و پاريس براي تحت فشار قرار دادن فعاليت هاي هسته اي ايران انجام دهد، بلكه در جلب حمايت توني بلر، نخست وزير انگليس و ژاك شيراك، رئيس جمهور فرانسه براي حمايت از طرح عقب نشيني يكجانبه اسرائيل از نوار غزه حمايتي بدست نياورد.
و همچنين تلاش ريچارد بوچر دستيار وزير امور خارجه آمريكا براي قانع كردن عبدالله گل وزيرخارجه تركيه به همراه شدن اين كشور با مواضع آمريكا در قبال برنامه هسته اي ايران با شكست روبرو شد.

در ادامه اين پروسه، ايران گام سوم ديپلماتيك را توسط نماينده خود در حاشيه برگزاري اجلاس شوراي حكام آژانس بين المللي انرژي اتمي برداشت و آمريكا را در جلب حمايت كشورهاي غير متعهد شوراي حكام آژانس بين المللي انرژي اتمي براي حمايت از مواضع اين كشور و تحت فشار قرار دادن ايران ناكام گذاشت.
تلاش آمريكا براي جلب حمايت غير متعهدها كه نيمي از 35 عضو شوراي حكام را تشكيل مي دهند در حالي صورت مي گرفت كه علي اصغر سلطانيه، نماينده ايران در آژانس بطور غير مستقيم از اعضاي شوراي حكام خواسته بود با حفظ خويشتنداري به منظور پرهيز از بين رفتن فضاي كمابيش مثبت آژانس، از بيان اظهارات تكراري خودداري كنند.
در نهايت با وجود تمام تلاشي كه آمريكا براي جلب حمايت "نم" انجام داد هفته گذشته كشورهاي غير متعهد عضو شوراي حكام آژانس بين المللي انرژي اتمي، با تكرار مواضع بيانيه كوالالامپور، بدون توجه به درخواست آمريكا از حق ايران در توليد سوخت هسته اي حمايت كردند.

اما مهمترين و سرنوشت سازترين گام ديپلماتيك ايران با نزديك شدن زمان برگزاري اجلاس آتي سران كشورهاي صنعتي جهان در روسيه و در حالي برداشته مي شود كه تمام نگاهها بسمت تهران و پاسخ صريح و كامل ايران دوخته شده است.
با توجه به موفقيت نسبي ايران در سه مرحله قبلي، به نظر مي رسد جمهوري اسلامي ايران در چهارمين گام خود در شرايط كنوني مي تواند با اصلاح و تعريف مشخص مشوقهاي سياسي، اقتصادي و هسته اي ارائه شده از سوي غرب و امريكا و با روشن ساختن نقاط ابهام در تعهدات خواسته شده از ايران، تعريف و ميزان غني سازي داخلي، با "احتساب هزينه منفعت" پس از "متعادل سازي" مشوقها و تعهدات، در قالب مذاكراتي سازنده و هدفمند در بازه زماني مشخص و ضمانتهاي عيني و اجرايي متقابل به حفظ حقوق حقه و توسعه صلح آميز هسته اي و تثبيت توان ديپلماتيك خود در عرصه بين المللي بپردازد.

[Rasputin]

A senior Iranian official has voiced frustration at delays in construction of the Bushehr nuclear power station by Russia and said Iran hoped to order another two nuclear power stations from Moscow, in an interview published.

Deputy Foreign Minister Mehdi Safari said on Tuesday, Russia had yet to deliver nuclear fuel for the plant in southwest Iran, that equipment had not been delivered and that work had also been slowed by personnel changes on the Russian side.

"All this creates certain difficulties in keeping to the delivery timetable. We hope for the rapid solution of these problems and plan to order two more atomic power stations from Russia," each with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts, Safari told the Russian daily Gazeta.

"The joint work has dragged out, but I am confident that construction will be finished at the end of 2006," Safari was quoted as saying.

The United States has urged Russia to halt work at Bushehr, suspecting that Iran's nuclear energy programme is a cover for developing nuclear weapons.

Tehran has repeatedly complained of delays by its ally Moscow in completing work on Iran's first nuclear power station.

Work on building a nuclear facility at Bushehr was first begun by German contractors in the 1970s but was halted by the Iranian revolution and the Iran- Iraq war.

Safari reiterated Iran's insistence on having a peaceful nuclear energy programme.

"The use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes is our legal right and Iranian politicians insist on it. For this reason we will fully cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency," he said.

"America presents our work in a distorted form. We are open to negotiations. It is the West that closes them off unilaterally," he said.

Russia has supported Western calls for Iran to halt nuclear enrichment and has proposed setting up a joint venture to enrich uranium for Iran on Russian territory.

[Rasputin]

Germany's foreign minister said on Monday it was inconceivable that the six powers that made an offer of incentives to Iran to encourage it to give up uranium enrichment would wait another two months for a response.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said last week Iran would deliver its answer on the package by August 22, prompting President Bush to accuse Tehran of dragging its feet.

"They have had the offer for two weeks already," Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of a Social Democrat (SPD) disarmament conference.

"I hope a decision will be made soon in Tehran. I can't imagine we would wait until August 22," he said.

A package of incentives designed to resolve the standoff with the Islamic republic was drawn up by the six powers -- Germany and the United Nation's Security Council permanent members France, Britain, the United States, Russia and China.

The offer was presented to the Iranians by European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana on June 6 and the United States has called for a response by a July 15-17 summit of leaders from the Group of Eight (G8 industrial nations.

Germany and other Western countries suspect that Iran is trying to develop atomic weapons. Tehran says it only wants to harness nuclear technology for use in power plants.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki met Steinmeier in Berlin on Saturday. Afterwards, Mottaki said there were "unclear points" in the offer and said Iran had questions.

Steinmeier said Solana would hopefully answer all Iran's queries later this week.

"I'm pleased that in the course of the week there will be another meeting between Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani and the EU's high representative Javier Solana. I hope that the allegedly unclear points can be cleared up with comments from Mr. Solana," he said.

ARMS RACE IN MIDDLE EAST, ASIA?

Steinmeier said earlier at the SPD disarmament conference that resolving the crisis with Iran was vital to prevent a Cold War-style nuclear arms race from developing in the Middle East.

He said the same went for Asia if a clash with North Korea, which claims to have developed atomic weapons and is believed to be preparing a long-range missile test, is not resolved.

"If there's no resolution to the North Korea and Iran conflicts, then there will be a new nuclear arms race in the Middle East and Asia," he said.

In the case of Iran, it also concerned the protection of Israel, Steinmeier said. President Ahmadinejad has called for Israel to be "wiped off the map" and has repeatedly expressed doubt that the Holocaust happened -- a crime in Germany.

After his weekend meeting with Mottaki, Steinmeier reiterated that the six powers would only open full-scale negotiations with Iran on the terms of the offer if Tehran first suspended its enrichment program.

In exchange for an enrichment suspension, the six countries have agreed to halt work on a U.N. Security Council resolution that would open the door to political and economic sanctions.

Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also spoke at the SPD conference and said the U.N. Security Council had not had a good track record on dealing with the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.

"If I look at the action in the case of North Korea ... you ended up with North Korea not even being discussed by the Security Council and with North Korea walking away from the (NPT) without the council even meeting to discuss the implications of that decision," ElBaradei said.

"We ended up with North Korea saying 'we have nuclear weapons'. That record over the last 15 years is not one that makes one very optimistic," he said.

The IAEA board of governors transferred the North Korea case to the Security Council in early 2003 but never did anything with it, preferring to leave the issue to the "6-party" talks.

In the case of Iran, the council has been deadlocked since the IAEA referred Tehran to it earlier this year.

ElBaradei also called on the five permanent Security Council members to set a good example for countries interested in getting atom bombs by negotiating further steps toward disarmament as they are obliged to do under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

[Rasputin]

Fear you not my part of the dialogue – Shakespeare

In a significant shift of policy, the United States offered to join Europe in talks with Iran on its nuclear programme, if Tehran suspends its enrichment of uranium.

One must remember that in 2003, Bush refused to allow any response to the Iranian offer to negotiate an agreement that would have accepted the existence of Israel.

The decision to change tactics towards Iran is definitely a major policy shift for the Bush administration, who earlier had refused to join the talks or make other diplomatic overtures to Iran, despite calls from European nations, other leading diplomats and former US Secretaries of State, overturning a high level decision by Washington last March to freeze Iranian talks.

For the past five years, the Bush administration has followed a failed policy towards Iran, leading to the current dangerous impasse. It is time for the administration to reassess its strategy, think out of the box and enter into direct talks with Iran. The Bush administration has been bullying Iran and, quite understandably, the Iranians have become more resolute in their right to attain nuclear power.

But the story of how a President, who rarely changes his mind, did so in this case could also illustrate the changed dynamics between the State Department and the White House in Mr. Bush’s second term.

Following a meeting she had attended in Berlin, days earlier, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice delivered the grim news to her boss: Their coalition against Iran was at risk of falling apart.

The Chinese had warned the United States ‘not to have any preconditions’ for negotiations. However, that warning went unheeded in spite of the fact that the US offer is also aimed at persuading China and Russia that Washington is doing all it can to find a diplomatic solution to the dispute. If you had believed the Iraq WMD fable, you would probably also fall for this!

In one particular ominous comment, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that the negotiations would give Iran ‘one last excuse’ to resist American demands. This tells us clearly that US diplomacy is just a smokescreen for the eventual hostilities.

But could the US afford to ignore participating in direct negotiations?

Analysts hold that the United States changed its rigid position as a result of various obvious factors and reason, mainly;

* the US threat of force became weaker following the Iraq war quagmire for Bush, as his public support rate has decreased to a new record low of less than 31%,

* there isn’t much hope that the US would win any support from most foreign countries, especially from China and Russia, as long as there is a possibility of a diplomatic solution to the issue,

* there has been a growing pressure of a strong demand by the international community for US direct involvement in the negotiations, as most countries are rapidly losing patience with what they increasingly see as US intransigence,

* with its military commitments stretched-out in Afghanistan and Iraq, can the US take on another, most probably unilateral, decision on war on Iran?

* with both Russia and China opposing US sanctions against Iran the Bush administration has hit a roadblock at the Security Council,

* the decision for participation in direct negotiations was approved by the Israeli government, despite the Israeli unabashed and relentless warmongering against Iran

Despite the unforeseeable prospects, dialogue is always better than confrontation and negotiation is always more preferable to threat.

Loyalty is of course important in any negotiations, but it is only important once the facts have been carefully analyzed and evaluated and the truth has been established. Loyalty must be subordinate to truth.

Notwithstanding all this, it is hoped that this is a step in the right ‘realistic’ direction that could really make a difference.

[Rasputin]

Iran insists it needs until August to assess an international offer of incentives to get it to halt its controversial nuclear programme.
Tehran was responding to a call by the G8 group of industrialised countries and Russia to give a reply next week.

Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said his country was "seriously and carefully" reviewing the package.

But he added that questions still needed to be clarified, and it was reasonable for Iran to take time.

G8 foreign ministers on Thursday urged Iran to reply to the proposals at a meeting on 5 July between EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and top Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani.

"We are disappointed in the absence of an official Iranian response to this positive proposal," the ministers said in a statement.

"An agreement of this sort would allow the Iranian people to enjoy the benefits of modern civil nuclear power and would bring Iran many other long-term political and economic advantages."

The ministers were meeting in Moscow ahead of a summit of G8 leaders in mid-July in St Petersburg.

The six major nations involved in negotiating with Tehran - the United States, Britain, France, China, Russia and Germany - will assess the situation just before the summit.

They put together an offer - reportedly including technological help and trade concessions - to try to persuade Tehran to end uranium enrichment.

Iran says its programme is entirely peaceful and is designed to meet its energy needs, but the US and other powers say it is using it to develop nuclear weapons.

[Rasputin]

هفته نامه آمريکايی نيويورکر در تازه ترين شماره خود گزارش داده است که افسران پنتاگون به دولت جورج بوش گفته اند که بمباران تاسيسات اتمی ايران احتمالا در نابود کردن برنامه هسته ای آن کشور ناکام خواهد ماند.
سیمور هرش، برنده جایزه خبرنگاری پولیتزر، در مقاله ای در اين هفته نامه با اشاره به طرح پیشین دولت جورج بوش برای بکارگیری سلاح اتمی برای حمله به تاسیسات غنی سازی اورانیوم در نطنز می نویسد نظامیان آمریکا سرانجام موفق شدند که در اواخر آوریل گذشته کاخ سفید را برای کنار گذاردن گزینه حمله اتمی قانع کنند.

آقای هرش در مقاله ای که در ماه آوريل در اين نشريه چاپ شد به نقل از منابع خبری خود در وزارت دفاع آمریکا مدعی شده بود که این کشور در حال برنامه ریزی برای هدف قرار دادن احتمالی تاسيسات اتمی ايران است و در اين ميان گزينه استفاده از سلاح های کوچک اتمی را نيز مد نظر دارد.

اما گزارشگر نيويورکر در مقاله تازه خود می نویسد فرماندهان ارتش آمریکا با تاکید بر فقدان اطلاعات دقیق درباره برنامه های اتمی ایران به کاخ سفید گفته اند که بمباران ایران نمی تواند تاسیسات اتمی این کشور را نابود کند.

هوشنگ امیر احمدی استاد دانشگاه راتگرز آمریکا درباره اعتبار مقالات سیمور هرش می گوید:

"آقای هرش روزنامه نگار برجسته ای است اما در عین حال پیش بینی هایش گاهی با واقعیات جور در نیامده است. من فکر می کنم که مقاله اخیر او در ادامه مقاله قبلی است که در آن گفته بود آمریکا در صدد حمله به ایران است. اما او در مقاله جدید خود تلاش می کند که بگوید پیش بینی هایش درست بود با این تفاوت که ارتش با جنگ طلب های درون دولت آقای بوش همکاری نمی کند و نظرات ایشان را نمی پذیرد."

سیمور هرش در مقاله اخیر خود با اشاره به درگیری های داخلی در حکومت آمریکا بر سر عملیات نظامی علیه ایران می نویسد برخی افراد نظیر الیوت آبرامز و مایکل دوران، مشاورین شورای امنیت ملی کاخ سفید، معتقدند که حمله به ایران نه فقط لطمه ای به وضعیت آمریکا در عراق نمی زند بلکه می تواند مفید نیز باشد زیرا چنین تهاجمی از یکسو بین شیعیان عراقی طرفدار و غیرطرفدار ایران اختلاف می افکند و از سوی دیگر سنی ها و کردهای عراقی را به نفع آمریکا متحد می کند.

هوشنگ امیراحمدی می گوید گرچه نفوذ طرفداران حمله آمریکا به ایران در تصمیم گیری های کاخ سفید کمتر از گذشته شده است اما وقوع یک حادثه جدی می تواند شرایط را به سرعت به نفع این گروه های جنگ طلب تغییر دهد:

"یکی از نگرانی های من این است که در آینده نزدیکی جریان عظیمی نظیر یازده سپتامبر در منطقه و یا خارج از منطقه بوجود آید. بعد بلافاصله ظرف 24 ساعت آن را به ایران مرتبط کنند و زمینه را برای حمله فوری و سریع به ایران فراهم کنند."

مقاله سیمور هرش حاکی از ادامه اختلاف بین نظامیان و غیرنظامیان وزارت دفاع آمریکا بر سر برخورد با ایران است.

در حالیکه نظامیان با تاکید بر دشوار بودن حمله به تاسیسات اتمی ایران و آسیب پذیری آمریکا در عراق مخالف عملیات نظامی هستند، غیرنظامیان که مطابق قوانین آمریکا اداره وزارت دفاع را بر عهده دارند با تفکرات ایدئولوژیک خود از تغییر حکومت در ایران همچنان دفاع می کنند.

[Rasputin]

Austria - Western powers will reactivate efforts to punish Iran through possible U.N. Security Council sanctions unless it suspends uranium enrichment and agrees to talks on its nuclear program by July 12, diplomats said Monday.


The envoys — some of them senior U.N. diplomats and all familiar with details of the six-nation drive to persuade Iran to compromise on its nuclear activities — spoke just two days before a key Iran- European Union meeting in Brussels meant to make clear to the Iranians that their time is running out.

On Wednesday, senior EU envoy Javier Solana will urge top Iranian nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani to commit his country immediately to suspending enrichment and starting negotiations, the diplomats said.

They also said Russia and China were closer than ever to supporting the West on U.N. Security Council action — including sanctions — if Tehran refuses the package of incentives meant to wean it off enrichment. Still, they suggested it could take some time to secure total commitment to sanctions from Moscow and Beijing.

"We are looking forward to hear from Iran ... the official response," said Cristina Gallach, Solana's spokeswoman.

A European official outlined more realistic expectations, saying Larijani would likely come back with questions — and perhaps a counterproposal.

If so, the diplomats said, Solana plans to tell him Iran must accept the terms of the package by July 12, when foreign ministers of the five permanent Security Council nations and Germany consult in Paris.

"If Iran has not answered positively by this date, the ministers will likely adopt a decision to resume negotiations on the Security Council resolution," said one of the diplomats, who, like the European official, demanded anonymity in exchange for divulging the game plan on Iran.

The European official said Russia and China were contemplating sending high-level officials to Wednesday's meeting in a symbolic show of unity with the West.

In Washington, Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns told C-Span television in an interview to be aired Sunday that if Iran has not responded by July 12, "then I think the pressure will be enormous on the Iranians from all the international community."

Work on a U.N. Security Council resolution was suspended May 3 to allow the six powers to draw up a plan of perks if Iran agrees to a long-term moratorium on enrichment — or punishments that include the threat of selective U.N. sanctions if it doesn't. Solana last month presented the rewards to Larijani but made no mention of the punishments, so as not to rile Tehran.

While Iran argues it has a right to the technology under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty to generate power, there is increasing international concern that it wants to enrich uranium to weapons-grade levels for use in the fissile core of nuclear warheads.

Iranian officials have said they would not respond to the six-power offer before mid-August, a gambit described by one of the diplomats as an attempt to stall beyond the July 15-17 summit of the Group of Eight industrialized nations in Russia.

Before the summit, the United States and its allies on the Security Council — all G-8 members — "can apply pressure on Russia" to stand with the West on Iran, but that lever will be weakened after the St. Petersburg meeting, one diplomat said.

Possible U.N.-mandated sanctions include a visa ban on government officials, freezing assets, blocking financial transactions by government figures and those involved in the country's nuclear program, an arms embargo and a blockade on the shipping of refined oil products to Iran. Rewards include providing Iran with nuclear expertise and hardware, including reactors.

Breaking with a more than 2-decade-old ban on high-level diplomatic contact with Tehran, the United States said in late May that it was ready to join in such talks.

But the Americans, along with Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany — the six nations that endorsed the package — insist that Iran suspend its nascent enrichment activities before talks begin.

Tehran repeatedly has rejected that demand since the six powers agreed on the package in Vienna on June 1.

[Rasputin]

Iran said on Wednesday crucial talks between the European Union and Iran on incentives aimed at ending a nuclear stand-off have been postponed for a week, giving no immediate official reason for the delay.

Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said the meeting between Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana would not take place as planned in Brussels.

"No negotiations will take place today between Larijani and Solana," Mottaki was quoted as saying by the IRNA news agency.

A senior Iranian nuclear official who requested anonymity told Reuters that the meeting had been postponed until next week while Iran's Fars news agency reported the trip was canceled "for some reasons" and could be rescheduled in coming days.

Solana's office could not immediately confirm when the meeting, set by Western powers as a deadline for Iran's response, would take place.

Solana spoke by telephone with Larijani on Wednesday and would issue a statement later, an EU official said.

Iran had said it needs more time to reply to the incentives offer, adding to longstanding Western suspicions that it has been playing for time in the stand-off.

RAJAVI VISIT

But an analyst in Tehran said a visit to the European Parliament in Strasbourg on the same day by the leader of the outlawed National Council of Resistance of Iran, regarded by the government as a terrorist group, appeared to be the reason.

Maryam Rajavi, who is based in France and whose organization is the political wing of the outlawed People's Mujahideen armed group, was invited to the legislature by a cross-party group of EU lawmakers who call themselves "Friends of a Free Iran."

"One might think that this didn't please the Iranians, but it could also be a welcome pretext for the Iranians," the analyst said, who asked not to be identified.

Rajavi held a news conference at the EU legislature in the eastern French city but canceled plans to meet parliamentary groups in what she said was a move to avoid giving the Iranian authorities an excuse to stop the nuclear talks.

"I wish to remove any pretext that the mullahs might have and I wish to make negotiations possible for the international community, and that is why I have asked that the meetings be deferred," she told journalists.

Diplomats said divisions in the U.N. Security Council over what action to take on Iran meant there had been little chance of Tehran responding either at the Brussels meeting or before a July 15 summit of G8 leading industrialized nations in Russia.

The United States has accused Iran of having a secret program to build nuclear weapons. Iran denies the charge, saying its nuclear program is solely for power generation.

Iran says it sees ambiguities in the June 6 offer by Germany and the five permanent, veto-wielding U.N. Security Council members -- the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China.

The major powers offered a state-of-the-art nuclear reactor with a guaranteed fuel supply, economic benefits and support for the idea of a regional security framework if Iran halted uranium enrichment.

Diplomats believe that as Russia and China were unlikely to back any U.N. sanctions against Iran at this stage, the West was in no position to set deadlines.