Iran’s Nuclear Envoy Debuts At EU Talks
It is my understanding that Jalili is also a Twelver who believes that the imam Mahdi is sitting at the bottom of that well out behind the Jamkaran Mosque, waiting for the right moment…which Twelvers believe they can create.
~Bash
ROME — Iran’s top nuclear envoy faced pressure Tuesday to enter formal negotiations on his country’s atomic program in his first international meeting — a gathering seen as a barometer on whether his appointment is a sign Iran is hardening its position.
Saeed Jalili was appointed his country’s chief negotiator after Ali Larijani resigned over the weekend. The departure of the more moderate Larijani was seen as a victory for hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that could push the Islamic Republic into even more defiance in its standoff with the West over its nuclear activities.
The United States and some of its allies accuse Iran of secretly trying to develop nuclear weapons and have demanded it halt uranium enrichment, a key step in the production of atomic weapons. Iran denies the claim, saying its program is for peaceful purposes including generating electricity.
In London, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Tuesday he would press for further sanctions against Iran. Brown sidestepped a question about when military action might be needed.
“I believe the combination of our willingness to go through the UN process, which we will do, and our ability to take sanctions as a European Union, sends the strongest possible message to Iran,” he said.
The Bush administration has led the push for sanctions against Iran, but last month agreed to Russian and Chinese demands to give the country until November to address international concerns.
Larijani attended the talks in Rome on Tuesday alongside Jalili and the EU’s Javier Solana, according to Iran’s Foreign Ministry. The talks were scheduled before Larijani’s announcement.
Before Larijani resigned, an EU official, who requested anonymity because of the confidential nature of the matter, told The Associated Press that the Rome meeting would focus on Tehran’s refusal to heed U.N. Security Council demands for a freeze on uranium enrichment.
Jalili, whose official title as secretary of the Supreme Security Council makes him the chief nuclear negotiator, is a close loyalist of Ahmadinejad.
The 42-year-old fought in Iran’s war with Iraq in the 1980s as an officer in the Revolutionary Guards. With a PhD in political science, he has been a career diplomat since the late 1980s.
Named by Ahmadinejad as deputy foreign minister for European and American affairs, he has in the past served as a quiet envoy for the president, taking messages to European officials. He accompanied Ahmadinejad on a recent visit to New York. He has also frequently spoken to the foreign press defending Iran’s nuclear program.
AP article by Alessandra Rizzo here.
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Are we going to send UN inspectors over there? What a joke those guys were in Iraq. A business friend of mine in NJ just outside Philly offered his inventory of process equipment so that they could learn what to look for as to chemical and biological manufacturing facilities. These “scientists” had their first look at production equipment, and materials of construction in their lives! After a day and a half of intensive learning they still knew far less than a journeyman pipefitter who really could give a shit less about what the equipment actually does. I still wonder what banana republic institution of higher learning produces the UN’s “experts”
October 23rd, 2007 at 1:34 pmWhat use is a “negotiator” for something Iran says is not negotiable?
“… what banana republic institution of higher learning produces the UN’s “experts”…”
Er, that would most likely be New York City and Columbia University.
October 23rd, 2007 at 2:08 pmThat dude looks like target to me. Watch___5 in the 10 ring!
October 23rd, 2007 at 4:18 pmIran’s parliament of the 3 stooges wrote to Ahmadingadong complaining that Mr Larijani’s departure “put the country in even more danger”.
The burrito supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, praised Mr Larijani and said his resignation should not have happened.
Meanwhile a spokesman for the Armenian president, Robert Kocharyan, yesterday said Mr Ahmadinejad had been forced to cut short a trip there because Ahmadingadong is in big trouble with Curly, Larry and Mo.
October 23rd, 2007 at 7:12 pmThe UN is a useless institution. This guy is a puppet. No negotiation is needed.
October 23rd, 2007 at 7:14 pm