• Military

• WMD Menu                           

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Door remains open for resumption of EU-Iran talks, says UK

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

London, Nov 7, IRNA
EU-Talks-Iran-UK
The British government confirmed Monday that Foreign Secretary Jack Straw had received a letter from Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, Ali Larijani, calling for a resumption of nuclear talks with the EU.

A Foreign Office spokesman in London told IRNA that he was unable to comment on the contents of the letter, which he said was "confidential."
But he repeated that the so-called EU3 of Britain, France and Germany had made clear that the "door remains open for resumption of talks" if Iran abides by the Paris Agreement, that is seeking to reach long-term arrangements on its nuclear program.

Speaking ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, which was already due to discuss bringing forward relations with Iran, Straw said they had looked "very carefully" at the letter.

He added that the Iran was also "under an obligation to respond positively to the resolution of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency."
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana, who was also attending the Brussels meeting, told reporters separately that they would respond to the letter, but "don't want to go any further at this point." Talks between the two sides broke down in August when Iran rejected an EU offer of economic and political incentives in return for a permanent suspension of the development of a fuel enrichment cycle that has the potential for military use.

In an interview with IRNA in London last month, Britain's Ambassador to Tehran Richard Dalton indicated that the EU could break the deadlock over Iran's nuclear program by advancing its original offer made under the terms of the Paris Agreement.

"We think that the proposal that the EU put forward can be certainly improved and the proposal of (the Iranian President), His Excellency Mr Ahmadinejad, made in New York can clearly go on to the table," Dalton said.

He said that Britain's objective was to return to negotiations with Iran on the nuclear issue and that "the important thing is to recreate the trust that have so badly been damaged during this summer."
HC/2321/1414