US STATE DEPT: The
P-5+1 political directors discussed next steps in addressing
international concerns about Iran’s pursuit of nuclear – of a nuclear
weapons capability, and affirmed their unwavering commitment to a
negotiated diplomatic solution to those concerns.
We,
the United States, outlined the President’s and the Secretary’s goal on
Iran, which is to explore diplomatic solutions to the very serious
areas of concern. A diplomatic solution necessitates a willingness to
engage directly with each other on the basis of mutual respect and
mutual interest. We hope that the Government of Iran chooses to
reciprocate.
On
the nuclear issue, the U.S. remains committed to the P-5+1 process.
What is different is that the U.S. will join P-5+1 discussions with
Iran from now on. The P-5+1 has asked Dr. Javier Solana, EU High
Representative for Common and Foreign Security Policy, to extend an
invitation to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to meet
with representatives of the P-5+1.
If
Iran accepts, we hope this will be the occasion to seriously engage
Iran on how to break the logjam of recent years and work in a
cooperative manner to resolve the outstanding international concerns
about its nuclear program. Any breakthrough will be the result of the
collective efforts of all the parties, including Iran.
The
P-5+1 strategy is a dual-track approach, as you all know. All P-5+1
members will be active in the engagement track. In addition, all will
continue to hold Iran to international standards of conduct, including
Iran’s compliance with its international nuclear obligations.
US State Dept. Robert Wood, Acting Department Spokesman, Daily Press Briefing, April 8, 2009P-5+1 and other US - IRAN foreign policy issues continued to dominate the State Dept. Press Briefing:
QUESTION:
When you meet with the Iranian – well, if they come back to you and
say, yes, we’d like to meet, do you plan to give them a new offer or an
updated offer from the incentives package offered last June?
MR. WOOD:
Well, that incentive package remains on the table. We hope that Iran
will take up that package. But we’re certainly looking forward to
engaging the Iranians in a discussion of their nuclear program. As I
said, we will be – we will have a seat at the table from now on.