The USA still expects a reply from Iran on a proposal by the six
international mediators to hold negotiations, spokesman for the US
State Department Philip Crowley said, RIA Novosti reports.
In early November, Tehran proposed to hold talks on the nuclear issue
in Istanbul on November 23 or December 5. The proposition was
addressed to the EU Commissioner for Foreign Affairs Catherine Ashton.
She agreed on a meeting of the 'six' (Russia, USA, China, UK, France,
Germany) on December 5 but offered to hold it in Switzerland.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had said earlier that Tehran
plans to discuss global issues, not its nuclear program. The
declaration was announced after Iranian officials had made several
refuses and agreements to discuss the nuclear program with the 'six'.
On Tuesday a spokesman of the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Ramin Mekhmanparast said that discussion of the nuclear issue is
unacceptable.
At the same time, the website of the Iranian ministry says that the
country is ready to discuss exchange of low-enriched uranium for
20%-enriched, basing only on the Tehran agreement.
Since 2003 the 'six' has been trying to persuade Iran, together with
the IAEA, to halt uranium enrichment as a threat to the nuclear
non-proliferation regime. The negotiations were stopped in 2009 when
the IAEA criticized Iran for constructing the second uranium
enrichment plant and urged it to confirm that it did not decide to
construct any other nuclear facilities unregistered in the IAEA. In
May Turkey, Iran and Brazil signed an agreement involving exchange of
low-enriched uranium of Iran for highly-enriched on the territory of
Turkey.
