EU: STILL OPEN TO DIALOGUE WITH IRAN ABOUT NUKES

IRAN NUCLEAR: EU STILL OPEN TO DIALOGUE, SOLANA TELLS ITALY

Rome, 5 Oct. (AKI) - EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana told Italian foreign minister Massimo D'Alema Europe is still open to talks with Iran to solve an international standoff over its nuclear programme after a brief meeting on Thursday in Rome. "The time for negotiations is not indefinite. Yet though we are failing now, we must keep an open door for dialogue with Iran. The solution can only be a diplomatic one," Solana said after meeting D'Alema. On Wednesday the EU foreign policy chief said the time for talks was over given Iran's refusal to comply with international calls to abandon sensitive nuclear work the West fears is aimed at building nuclear weapons."

Since June we have been working with Iran. Some progress has been made but the crucial issue of uranium enrichment suspension has not been solved," Solana said in Rome.

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Iran, which has always refused to abandon uranium enrichment saying it is for civilian nuclear power generation, subsequently ignored a UN 31 August deadline threatening it with sanctions if it failed to comply with its demand to stop enriching uranium.

On Thursday, Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stressed once again that Tehran would not abandon its nuclear ambitions but said he was still open to talks.

"We are in favour of negotiations, peace and reaching an understanding, but in the framework of law, regulations and justice," Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying on Iranian state television.

Ever since stepping into power in May, the new Italian government of Romano Prodi has joined efforts to solve the standoff diplomatically without a recourse to sanctions, which are strongly endorsed by the US.

Italy is Iran's main trading partner in Europe and commercial relations between the two countries were reportedly worth five billion euros in 2005.

After meeting D'Alema, Solana also held talks with Prodi.


As I have stated on several occassions, dialogue/negotiations shall cease when Iran tests its nuclear bomb...The testing range shall be NYC...

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1) IRAN NUCLEAR: EU STILL OPEN TO DIALOGUE, SOLANA TELLS ITALY