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Iran wants to grant Obama "opportunity" to implement new policies

Iran Materials 11 February 2009 13:15 (UTC +04:00)

Iran said Wednesday that it would grant new US President Barack Obama the "opportunity" to implement his new policies toward Tehran, a Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman said, dpa reported.

"If Mr Obama plans to adopt serious changes in US policies, then he should have the opportunity to do so, and we have no intention to distort this by making anything premature," ministry spokesman Hassan Ghashghavi told reporters in Tehran.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had said earlier that Tehran would be patient with Obama and grant him sufficient time to come up with a new policy toward Tehran, which is under international sanctions for its nuclear programme.

"There has been no official request yet from the US side [for direct talks with Tehran], and everything so far said has only been made in the media, and, therefore, we make no pre-judgement in this regard and rather wait for what will happen in practice," Ghashghavi said.

Obama announced Monday that in the coming months, he would look for ways to open direct talks with Iran - which would represent a turnaround in the policy of former president George W Bush - and the talks would be geared toward developing a "relationship of mutual respect."

Ahmadinejad said Tuesday that Iran was ready for talks "but these talks should be held in an atmosphere of equality and justice."

"We are in favour of dialogue on the basis of respect and equality and ready to [cooperate with the United States] in settling regional problems caused by the previous US administration," Ghashghavi said.

Ahmadinejad said Iran would be ready to cooperate with the United States after almost three decades of political estrangement, even in the US fight against terrorism, if the changes proclaimed by Obama were real.

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