Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad-Ali Hosseini announced on Sunday that Iran would be willing to hold talks with the five UN Security Council members plus Germany on its nuclear issue if no preconditions were set.
Hosseini made the remarks at his weekly press conference when addressing whether an upcoming security meeting in Baghdad could potentially lead negotiations, the official IRNA news agency reported.
"The venue is not the question that we lay emphasis on Baghdad meeting," he said, adding that "we are ready to negotiate with ...the permanent members of the UN Security Council including China, Russia, France, Britain, the US plus Germany without any preconditions."
Iraq will welcome neighboring countries and other world powers on March 10 in an effort to ramp up support for Iraqi governmental efforts at stabilizing the country.
Asked if he had any recommendations for the Monday meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency's Board of Governors, the spokesman said, "The solution lies in negotiations and anything else will further complicate matters."
A senior Washington official said on Saturday that major powers had not resolved differences over a second UN sanctions resolution against Iran for its nuclear activities.
"Work remains to be done on a few outstanding issues, but all parties remain committed to a second resolution in the near future," State Department spokesman Kurtis Cooper said in a statement after US Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns and his counterparts from China, Russia, France, Britain and Germany held discussions by phone.
"They had a good discussion in keeping with the positive atmosphere of their conversations" in recent days, Cooper said.
The six countries are seeking a new Security Council resolution to place more diplomatic pressure on Iran's nuclear program.
The UN Security Council passed a resolution on Dec. 23, 2006 demanding that Iran suspend uranium enrichment in 60 days. However, Iran has ignored this call, maintaining that its nuclear program is for civilian purposes only.
The United States has accused Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian program, a charge Iran vigorously denied.
(Xinhua News Agency March 5, 2007)
