NEGOTIATIONS:IRAN HAS indicated its willingness to return to the negotiating table with western powers over its disputed nuclear programme, setting the scene for talks next month with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton.
At the European summit in Brussels yesterday, Ms Ashton disclosed that the Tehran summit has been in contact with her office to organise renewed talks with its nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili. The two sides have not had a meeting for 12 months. European diplomats see the demarché as evidence that a hardening of EU sanctions is bearing fruit.
“Dr Jalili . . . is agreeable to begin discussions after November 10th and wants to agree the time and place. I think this is a very significant move,” Ms Ashton told reporters “We’re now in touch with Iran this morning to see whether we can agree the time and place as quickly as possible.”
Ms Ashton is the envoy of the five permanent UN Security Council members and Germany on the Iranian nuclear programme. While western powers say evidence suggests the country is developing nuclear weapons, Tehran claims the programme is for peaceful means. Correspondence from Tehran to Ms Ashton says Dr Jalili is prepared to resume the talks “in a place and on a date convenient to both sides.”
Ms Ashton’s aim at present is to organise three days of talks with all aspects of the Iranian project on the table. A diplomat briefed on preparations for the engagement said the venue was more likely to be Geneva than Vienna, with a start date around November 17th.
For years, Iran has ruled out stopping its enrichment activity and has continued to defy western calls for greater co-operation. The dispute has stoked fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East.
