Posted on 01/23/2008 10:24:23 AM PST by cowdog77
DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Wednesday she believed the nuclear stand-off with Iran could be resolved diplomatically but that Tehran must not be allowed to become a nuclear weapons power.
Just one day after getting agreement on a draft U.N. Security Council resolution against Tehran, Rice offered the incentive of a "more normal relationship" and expanded trade if Iran gave up sensitive nuclear work, according to the prepared text of her speech to the World Economic Forum in Switzerland.
"Ultimately, though, we believe that we can resolve this problem through diplomacy," Rice said according to the text, which was distributed by conference organizers.
"If Iran would suspend its uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities - which is an international demand, not just an American one - then we could begin negotiations, and we could work over time to build a new, more normal relationship," she said.
Rice said this new relationship could be defined not by fear and mistrust but growing cooperation, expanding trade and exchange, and the peaceful resolution of differences.
In a conciliatory note after weeks of anti-Iranian rhetoric by the Bush administration, Rice said the United States had no desire for Iran to be a "permanent enemy".
"Iranians are a proud people with a great culture, and we respect the contributions they have made to world civilization," she said.
But she said Washington had real differences with Iran's government, from its pursuit of a nuclear weapon to support for terrorism and what the United States sees as Tehran's destabilizing policies in Iraq.
Rice said that agreement reached between foreign ministers of major powers in Berlin on Tuesday for a third sanctions resolution showed that the world remained united over not wanting Iran to become a nuclear weapons power.
"We will continue to hold Iran to its international obligations," said Ric
“The State Department just never learns!!”
Come on another Daft UN resolution? Gotta be good, maybe we can use it in our next ‘authorization of force’ declaration.
In some strange fashion, I almost wish that the Iranians would light a test nuke off in their desert just to prove to Condi and her State Department minions exactly how stupid they have been in dealing with both the mullahs and North Koreans.
Condippeasment.
I’m sure she’s just obeying her orders.
Go get ‘em Jorge. Fight that WOT, and the war on drugs, and the war on American citizens, and the war on the conservatives, and the ...
Agreed. Does anyone really think they will truly give up their quest? I think this would just push it further underground... Shades of N. Korea is right! UGH...
Yesterday, the state department spokesman note the North Korean 6 country discussions were in complete breakdown.
They give billions of our dollars away for nothing and it is exactly what we get.
Bring Ahmadinejad and the mad mullahs an autographed basketball and a bottle of Pierre Jouet. They’ll forget all about the 12th Imam and their dreams of a caliphate.
High volume. Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel, WOT
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Peace in our time.
I’m just astounded.
The U.N.’s top humanitarian affairs official, John Holmes, rebuked Israel for meting out collective punishment and Condoleezza Rice urged Israeli leaders to avert a humanitarian crisis. She did not repeat her “failure is not an option” mantra. Perhaps that’s better left for a bumper sticker, along with “Rice go home.”
I get a horrible vision of Rice visiting Tehran like Albright’s fiasco in Pyongyang.
Didn’t the Shah of Iran send Lazlo Toth/aka Fr. Guido Sarducci a nice tie in the 1970s?
Until then no deal.
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