Iran is concerned about the agenda of proposed nuclear talks and maintains its own conditions for resuming the negotiations with the world powers, an adviser to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Sunday, dpa reported.
"The president made it quite clear that there are certain conditions and frameworks which should be on the agenda of the talks," Ali-Akbar Javanfekr told Fars news agency.
He said Tehran wants the world powers clarify their stance on Israel's policies and its nuclear weapons, and declare whether the aim of the talks is to improve relations or merely to pressure Iran.
"If these conditions were met, then we would be willing to attend the meeting, but we will not (solely) talk about the nuclear energy issue," the adviser added.
The 5+1 group - Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States - plans to resume the nuclear talks on November 15-17 in Vienna.
Catherine Ashton, the European Union's foreign policy chief who represents the 5+1 group, has informed Iran's nuclear negotiator Saedi Jalili about the date and venue. Jalili has neither confirmed nor rejected the proposal yet.
Instead, he sent Ashton a letter on Friday saying that Iran was willing to agree a time and a venue to begin talks after November 10, but did not refer to her proposal.
Javanfekr said Jalili made it clear that Iran was ready for the talks "but only if the Iranian conditions were considered and met."
The world powers want the talks to focus on the nuclear dispute and Iran's refusal to suspend uranium enrichment. But Tehran says the 5+1 group should acknowledge Iran's nuclear rights, and broaden the talks to include global issues.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said last week that "the agenda should have content and not just form," adding that not only date and venue but also the agenda should be clarified.
One possible alternative could allow Iran to continue uranium enrichment to 3.5 per cent under the supervision of International Atomic Energy Agency, and send the low-enriched product to a third country in exchange for fuel from one of the nuclear nations.