Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, sent a letter yesterday to George Bush - the first such communication for 27 years - offering an analysis of global issues and "new ways of getting out of the current delicate situation in the world". The US last night rejected the letter as having no relevance. A US state department spokesman said: "Nothing in the letter addresses the issues on the table between Iran and the world, whether on the nuclear issue, terrorism or human rights." He added: "Instead, it is a broad historical, philosophical exposition." The 18-page letter, which did not directly mention the nuclear dispute but ranges over issues such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, came as the foreign ministers of the US, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China met in New York to discuss tabling a United Nations security council resolution against Iran. The meeting marked the international debut of Margaret Beckett, the new foreign secretary. She met Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, for a one-on-one at the Waldorf hotel before sitting down to dinner with representatives from France, Germany, Russia and China.
The US last night rejected the letter as having no relevance. A US state department spokesman said: "Nothing in the letter addresses the issues on the table between Iran and the world, whether on the nuclear issue, terrorism or human rights."
He added: "Instead, it is a broad historical, philosophical exposition." The 18-page letter, which did not directly mention the nuclear dispute but ranges over issues such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, came as the foreign ministers of the US, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China met in New York to discuss tabling a United Nations security council resolution against Iran.
The meeting marked the international debut of Margaret Beckett, the new foreign secretary. She met Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, for a one-on-one at the Waldorf hotel before sitting down to dinner with representatives from France, Germany, Russia and China.
After meeting Ms Rice, Mrs Beckett made her first public comment as foreign secretary: "I am delighted to be here." She said she had heard so much about Ms Rice from her predecessor, Jack Straw, who enjoyed a strong rapport with his US counterpart, that "I feel as if I know you already". Ms Rice said they had compared backgrounds and how they had risen to their present positions in politics. Mrs Beckett, still getting up to speed, had no public comment on Iran, while Ms Rice reiterated that the international community had to send a clear message that it could not develop a nuclear weapon.
Mrs Beckett, still getting up to speed, had no public comment on Iran, while Ms Rice reiterated that the international community had to send a clear message that it could not develop a nuclear weapon.
Her performance at DEFRA merited sacking, not promotion. keep to the Fen Causeway
Even the Independent said that John Reid only needed a blue badge to be a Conservative election agent. keep to the Fen Causeway
Plais Cymru seem more up to the task than anyone else, from what I've been gathering. guaranteed to evoke a violent reaction from police is to challenge their right to "define the situation." --- David Graeber citing Marc Cooper
Reuters: Iran letter faults US, makes no nuclear proposals (Tue May 9, 2006)
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has written President Bush a rambling 18-page treatise detailing alleged American foreign policy misdeeds and defending scientific research as "one of the basic rights of nations." The document, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters on Tuesday, argues generally that globally shared religious values should govern political life but makes no proposals for resolving the West's concerns over Tehran's nuclear ambitions. Iran insists it is enriching uranium -- and improving its techniques -- solely to produce electricity for domestic consumption, while the West argues the program is a cover for making nuclear weapons. The letter, received by the White House on Monday but not made public, was the first publicly announced personal communication from an Iranian president to his U.S. counterpart since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
The document, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters on Tuesday, argues generally that globally shared religious values should govern political life but makes no proposals for resolving the West's concerns over Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
Iran insists it is enriching uranium -- and improving its techniques -- solely to produce electricity for domestic consumption, while the West argues the program is a cover for making nuclear weapons.
The letter, received by the White House on Monday but not made public, was the first publicly announced personal communication from an Iranian president to his U.S. counterpart since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
Why isn't this grabbed as an opportunity (to find a solution, I mean, not for grandstanding)? Why do I even bother to ask such questions? In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes
