First Reactions to US Proposal

Omid Memarian, Rooz Online:

A day after the United States announced that if Iran suspended its uranium enrichment program, it would probably join the talks of the Europeans with Iran, Iran’s official news agency IRNA on Thursday reported that foreign minister Manoutchehr Mottaki said that the US proposal did not have a new or reasonable solution to the nuclear issue. Mottaki even as far as accusing US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice’s words of trying to “cover up some of the crimes of the United States in Iraq.” READ MORE

Iran’s government daily Keyhan whose manager is appointed by the leader of Iran editorialized that the US made the proposal because America needed Iran to solve its problems in the region and wrote, “Asking for sympathy, begging for security, esteem and lost respect will not work by being demanding and trying to belittle the other side.” Its editor too wrote a separate piece on the subject in which it said the US proposal contained nothing new because while Iran viewed uranium enrichment is inherent right, whereas the US and the three European countries were demanding precisely that.

The leader of the Islamic regime had previously expressly talked about not suspending the uranium enrichment program. Still since Iran had in recent weeks openly called for talks with the US, the latest American proposal will seem alluring to some senior officials.

Javier Solana, EU’s top diplomat had welcomed the American proposal and said, “The proposal brings back the European hope and will most certainly be a turning point in relations with Iran.” “Direct US participation and presence is the desire of all of us to reach an understanding with Iran,” he added.

But the most positive response of the American proposal was visible in the world oil market where the price of crude oil fell by $1.5 immediately after the news.