Taking over a nuclear standoff, Iran's new conservative cabinet has been
promising to put forward a new initiative to solve the deadlock.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hamid-Reza Asefi said
Sunday that Tehran would present its nuclear initiative within 45 days,
referring to a proposal already promised by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
"The comprehensive initiative will lead to a breakthrough in thecurrently
stranded nuclear negotiations with Europe, if the Europeans refrain from any
precondition they have set on the negotiations," Asefi said.
Later in the day, Ali Aqamohammadi, spokesman of the Supreme National
Security Council (SNSC), the body in responsible for nuclear talks, told the
official IRNA news agency that the new initiative has been studied by the
council in four sessions but more meetings will be held to finalize it in two
weeks.
Ahmadinejad on Aug. 9 announced his intention to submit a new comprehensive
nuclear proposal in a telephone conversation with the UN Secretary General Kofi
Annan.
"We are ready to proceed with (the nuclear) talks. Of course, I will put
forward initiatives in this respect after forming my cabinet," the new president
told Anna one day after Iran resumed uranium conversion activities and raised
international worries about the prospect of a diplomatic solution to Iran's
nuclear issue.
Since then, Ahmadinejad and other top officials have restated the pledge for
several times but have not revealed anything in detail so far.
Ali Larijani, Iran's new chief nuclear negotiator and SNSC secretary, also
joined the chorus of touting the new initiative.
He said on Saturday that the president's proposal would cause a breakthrough
and major changes in negotiations over the country's nuclear program.
Aqamohammadi told IRNA that the proposal just "deals with Tehran's nuclear
issues in an strategic way" and is "aimed at lifting barriers to talks between
Iran and Europe."
In parallel with these vows over the initiative, Iranian officials have also
been waving invitation cards to other countries, with an aim at expanding its
nuclear negotiations with the European Union's big three, namely France, Germany
and Britain,to multilateral consultation.
Ahmadinejad said on Aug. 21 that Iran would not tolerate some certain
countries gaining billions of US dollars from Iran but always condemning Iran
and intervening in the country's domestic affairs.
The strongest message came from Larijani, who on Thursday urged the EU to
take a logical stand in the nuclear negotiations and stressed that the EU's role
in the nuclear talks had been extensively doubted.
"Not only many members of the International Atomic Energy Agency(IAEA) but
also a number of other European countries have questioned about the connection
and frame based on which the European trio had been selected to represent the
European states and the agency," the new chief negotiator said.
On Saturday, Larijani wrapped up a visit to the headquarters of the IAEA in
Vienna and told reporters in Tehran that Iran would hold nuclear talks with more
countries.
"Iran's negotiating partners need not be limited to the three European
countries since other European countries can also play a favorable role in
Iran's nuclear issue. I do not agree that the European countries are acting on
the behalf of all nations," he said, proposing Russia, China and the NAM.
A similar intention was echoed by Asefi in his Sunday's briefing.
"Iran will continue to negotiate with the EU, but we will not restrict the
negotiating partners to the European trio of Britain, France and Germany," Asefi
said, citing Malaysia and South Africa.
"However, that does not mean that we will rule out the European trio. We just
want to talk with all countries and our principal negotiating partner is the
IAEA, " Asefi added.