By NBC News staff
The White House on Saturday denied a report that the United States had agreed to one-on-one talks with Iran over its nuclear program.
The New York Times, citing a senior administration official, said Iranian officials had insisted that the talks wait until after the presidential election so that they would know which American president would be negotiating with them. The Times said: "Reports of the agreement have circulated among a small group of diplomats involved with Iran."
But in a statement Saturday evening, National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor said the U.S. and Iran had no such agreement.
Vietor's statement:
It's not true that the United States and Iran have agreed to one-on-one talks or any meeting after the American elections. We continue to work with the P-5+1 on a diplomatic solution and have said from the outset that we would be prepared to meet bilaterally. The President has made clear that he will prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon, and we will do what we must to achieve that. It has always been our goal for sanctions to pressure Iran to come in line with its obligations. The onus is on the Iranians to do so, otherwise they will continue to face crippling sanctions and increased pressure.
World powers accuse Iran of covertly using its uranium enrichment program to produce nuclear weapons. Tehran insists the research and development is to generate electricity and produce medical isotopes.
EU agrees on wider Iran sanctions
A six-country alliance of Western powers, including the United States, has been attempting to negotiate with the Iranians, with?occasional concessions by Iran and assertions of its willingness to engage with the international partners. Recently, Iran suggested it would halt its enrichment program in exchange for fuel for a research reactor.
Despite the protracted dialogue, diplomats hope that a negotiated settlement can be reached, with international sanctions providing an incentive for Tehran to engage more meaningfully.
The sanctions, backed by numerous U.N. resolutions, began to bite this summer.
Hyperinflation in Iran is pushing up prices daily and the dramatic slide in the value of the rial against the U.S. dollar led to unrest in Tehran earlier this month, when angry currency traders clashed with security forces.
The European Union on Monday ratcheted up its sanctions, prohibiting transactions between Iranian and European banks and banning imports of Iranian natural gas, among other measures.?
Netanyahu: Draw 'clear red line' to stop Iran
Israel, believed to have the Middle East's only atomic arsenal, sees a nuclear-armed Iran as a threat to its existence and has expressed frustration over the failure of diplomacy and sanctions to rein in Tehran's nuclear activity. Western nations fear that a possible strike against Iran's facilities by Israel would lead to wider conflict.
More world stories from NBC News:
Follow World News from NBCNews.com on Twitter and Facebook
?
oklahoma news nascar news doppler radar colorado rockies moonshine news channel 4 radar weather
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.