Posted on 01/29/2009 3:02:20 AM PST by Sub-Driver
Obama team drafting letter to heal Iran rift: report 16 mins ago
LONDON (Reuters) – Officials of U.S. President Barack Obama's administration are drafting a letter to Iran from the president aimed at unfreezing U.S.-Iranian relations and opening the way for face-to-face talks, Britain's Guardian newspaper reported on Thursday.
The U.S. State Department has been working on drafts of the letter since Obama was elected last November, the report said. It was a response to a letter of congratulations sent by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad after Obama's poll victory.
The letter gives assurances that Washington does not want to overthrow the Iranian administration, but instead seeks changes in its behavior, the paper said. It would be addressed to the Iranian people and sent directly to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, or released as an open letter.
In Washington, a State Department official said the policy on Iran was under review and declined to comment on whether a letter was possibly being prepared to send to the Iranians.
"No decision on any specific policy initiative has yet been decided by the State Department," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The Guardian said the letter was being considered by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as part of a review of U.S. policy on Iran. A decision on sending it was not expected until the review was complete.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
I was pinged to the earlier thread. I imagine this issue will be on FR several times today. Let’s keep this one live as well as any other threads.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2173892/posts
That Bush was so naive' and dumb. He didn't even understand that all it took to heal a quarter century of hatred from Iran was a simple letter.
It better have some of that white powder in it, and I don’t mean Zero’s cocaine.
Do you like me? Do you want to be my friend? Check: Yes or No
Dear Mullah,...
After all, it worked so well for Jimmah.
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