WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says the United States has no illusions that Iran will accept overtures to return to negotiations about its nuclear program and will not wait much longer for Tehran to respond.
Both Clinton and national security adviser James Jones said in interviews aired Sunday that Washington has little choice but to deal with the government of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, regardless of U.S. feelings about charges he was re-elected in a fraudulent election and sympathy for the thousands who have protested the outcome.
Many protesters were arrested or killed and those jailed are now standing trial. U.S. officials have called the court proceedings “show trials.”
In April, the United States sent word to Iran that Washington still hoped to see Tehran return to talks with the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany about ending what is widely believed to be an attempt to build a nuclear weapon. Iran says its nuclear program is designed only for generating electricity.
The U.S. hopes to use a variety of economic enticements to lure the Iranians away from the nuclear program, fearing it will create an arms race in the Middle East. Beyond that Ahmadinejad has repeatedly called for the destruction of Israel, which sees a nuclear-armed Tehran as an existential threat. Israel is believed to have plans laid out to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities, but the U.S. is … >>>
