Iran Proposes New Talks With Europeans

Elaine Sciolino, The New York Times:

Apparently in an effort to win international support and avoid censure by the United Nations Security Council, Iran on Tuesday proposed a resumption of nuclear talks with the Europeans, a move that was immediately rejected by Britain as "vacuous." READ MORE

The proposal came eight days after Iran resumed nuclear work at three sites in violation of an agreement 16 months ago with France, Germany and Britain that froze most of Iran's nuclear activities. The resumption prompted the European trio to declare the talks dead and call for the Security Council to pass judgment on Iran.

In a letter on Tuesday, Javad Vaeedi, deputy head of the Supreme National Security Council, emphasized Iran's determination to "continue its full cooperation" with the International Atomic Energy Agency, adding that Iran "spares no effort in removing any ambiguity on its peaceful nuclear activities through dialogue and negotiation," according to a copy of the letter obtained by The New York Times.

Expressing appreciation for the Europeans, it added that Iran "considers dialogue and negotiation as the best course of action" and "is prepared to make the process a success."

But the letter, addressed to the three foreign ministries and sent through their missions in Vienna, gave no indication that Iran would resume the freeze on its conversion, enrichment and reprocessing of uranium as required by the agreement.

"It is unacceptable," said a German official, who described the letter as "a lot of nice words without any concrete offer."

Indeed, Ali Asghar Soltaniyeh, Iran's representative to the international nuclear agency in Vienna, said in a telephone interview from Vienna that Iran's decision to resume nuclear fuel research was "legal and irreversible."

He added: "We are ready to negotiate with the Europeans and the Russians. It is now their turn to understand us."

He called it unfair that Iran's scientists had not been able to conduct their nuclear research under the freeze, saying, "The philosophy of telling scientists not to think and research is contrary to human rights principles and the United Nations Charter."

The letter came on a day of intense diplomacy in several capitals.

The United States and the Europeans have begun a campaign to lobby some of the 35 nations that make up the decision-making board of the international nuclear agency to support their position that the Iranian nuclear crisis should be dealt with by the Security Council. The board will consider the issue in a special session starting Feb. 2.

France, Germany and Britain began drafting a resolution for consideration by the board that calls on Mohamed ElBaradei, the nuclear agency's director, to send a report about Iran's history of deception and lack of full cooperation with the agency to the Security Council, according to two European officials.

The officials described the outlines of the draft on condition of anonymity because of normal diplomatic rules.

In September, Iran was found in violation of its obligations under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty because of nearly two decades of deceiving the agency.

The draft resolution also expresses regret that Iran violated its voluntary freeze on sensitive nuclear activities. It asks the Security Council to urge Iran "to extend full and prompt cooperation" to the agency. It also requests that the Council inform Iran that "additional transparency measures are indispensable" if it hopes to prove that its nuclear program is peaceful and not intended to produce nuclear bombs.

The draft, which is in a very early stage, does not include a recommendation of punitive measures like sanctions, the officials said.

The strategy of both the United States and Europe is to slowly ratchet up the diplomatic pressure on Iran. A number of governments, including Britain, Germany, France and Japan, have said talk of sanctions is premature, and Russia and China, which wield veto power in the Security Council, oppose sanctions.

"We don't see this leading straight into sanctions," a senior British official told reporters under the condition that he not be identified, adding: "We want to build gradual sustained pressure over time. This is a long-term issue."

The official described Iran's call for a renewal of negotiations as "vacuous because the Iranians have created the conditions to make it impossible to talk."

China and Russia, meanwhile, have shown no willingness to take Iran's case to the Security Council.

Asked in a news briefing in Moscow when Russia would be willing to refer Iran to the Security Council, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was vague, saying: "This is a very schematic approach. Politics allow no such approach." He added, "I don't think the I.A.E.A. board of governors has run out of possibilities."

China on Tuesday called for a resumption of negotiations as the best way to defuse the crisis.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said Beijing favored diplomacy and urged all sides to "keep patient and make utmost efforts to resume negotiations" between the Europeans and Iran.

Russia is particularly keen on wresting the diplomatic initiative from the other Europeans by negotiating with Iran to accept its offer to allow Russia to enrich Iran's uranium on Russian soil and under strict Russian control to prevent diversion for a weapons program.

Iran's letter to the Europeans also stated Iran's desire to pursue negotiations with Russia as scheduled next month in the belief that they "will continue seriously and constructively."

Mr. Lavrov on Tuesday reiterated the offer to Iran to enrich Iran's uranium, but he also warned Iran to resume its freeze on all uranium work. "Talks presuppose an obligation," he said. "The Iranian obligation was to stick to the moratorium."

Iran, he said, "must do much more than what it has done already."

Underscoring Russia's opposition to sanctions, however, he said: "The question of sanctions against Iran puts the cart before the horse. Sanctions are in no way the best, or the only, way to solve the problem."

In London, the British official briefing reporters expressed skepticism that the Russian-Iranian talks showed promise.

"I think Iran is playing with the Russia proposal for tactical reasons," the official said.

Alan Cowell contributed reporting from London for this article, and Andrew E. Kramer from Moscow.