Sunday, December 02, 2007

Saeed Jalili Pushes Nuclear Talks Back to Square 1

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Photo of Saeed Jalili courtesy of the New York Times

NEW YORK TIMES: PARIS, Dec. 1 — In a sign that Iran has hardened its position on its nuclear program, its new nuclear negotiator said in talks in London on Friday that all proposals made in past negotiations were irrelevant and that further discussion of a curb on Iran’s uranium enrichment was unnecessary, senior officials briefed on the meeting said.

The Iranian official, Saeed Jalili, also told Javier Solana, who represented the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany in the five-hour talks, that United Nations Security Council resolutions punishing Iran for not suspending its enriched uranium activities were illegal, the officials said.

Representatives of the six countries met in Paris on Saturday afternoon to discuss further punitive Security Council measures against Iran after the final talks in London failed to produce a breakthrough. Iranian Pushes Nuclear Talks Back to Square 1 >>> By Elaine Sciolino

Mark Alexander